Verisk acquires McKenzie Intelligence Services to boost cat event preparation and response

Verisk, the data analytics and technology provider, has acquired McKenzie Intelligence Services (MIS), a geospatial intelligence and event response company that specialises in global real-time catastrophe and conflict event analysis.

As per the announcement, MIS will integrate into Verisk’s Catastrophe and Risk Solutions division, enhancing its real-time geospatial intelligence within a more extensive portfolio that includes catastrophe risk modeling, global loss indexes, advanced analytics, and risk data.

MIS provides swift post-event damage assessments, military-grade intelligence, and actionable insights that facilitate real-time decision-making following a significant loss event.

From pre-event alerts to post-event exposure damage assessment and quantification, MIS provides insurers, reinsurers, brokers, and loss adjusters with the necessary intelligence to respond promptly to such events.

In addition, Verisk’s acquisition of MIS extends the firm’s profile within Strikes, Riots and Civil Commotion (SRCC) and political violence risk analytics, bringing real-time, incident-level intelligence that activates when an event is unfolding.

It’s also important to highlight that MIS aggregates and analyses multi-source geospatial data that ultimately provides re/insurers with rapid and precise insights in order to support financial and operational decisions, property-level damage assessments, confident claims resolutions, portfolio exposure estimates, claims triage, as well as litigation support.

Together with Verisk’s expertise in monitoring external risks across operations, supply chains and investments, the further enhancements and capabilities that the company will now have through its acquisition of MIS will give clients a more connected view of emerging and unfolding risks, helping them prepare earlier, respond faster and make more confident decisions when events occur.

Rob Newbold, president of Verisk Catastrophe and Risk Solutions, commented: “Verisk and MIS share a commitment to helping clients make faster, more confident decisions before, during, and after catastrophic events.”

He continued: “By bringing MIS’s real-time geospatial intelligence together with Verisk’s catastrophe models, risk analytics, and claims solutions, we can give clients a more complete view of unfolding events so they can assess impacts, prioritize response and support policyholders more effectively.”

Forbes McKenzie, founder of MIS, said, “We’ve worked with Verisk to integrate real-time event data for rapid accumulation analysis, so it felt like a natural fit to join the team, especially as catastrophes grow increasingly disruptive around the world. Together with Verisk’s risk modelling and claims solutions, we can help insurers better serve policyholders during their most challenging moments.”