Some underwriting agencies are reporting increasing broker opportunities in the corporate travel space. They say the complexity of the risks facing business travellers – likely including today’s geopolitical volatility from the United States to the Middle East – have created a niche. More corporate travellers, they say, are turning to brokers for adaptable cover, rather than off the shelf insurance.
“We see it as a real growth area,” said Andrew Batchelar (pictured).
Batchelar, CEO of Batch Underwriting, said corporate travel has bounced back since the COVID 19 pandemic’s travel restrictions - but it’s not the same as it was. “The risks are more complex and businesses are more conscious of their responsibilities,” he said. “That creates a space for brokers to step in as trusted advisers.”
Batchelar said his firm is seeing a travel coverage uptick among a range of broker partners, including those who, in the past, haven’t offered travel insurance to clients.
“We see strong traction in sectors like resources, professional services, engineering and logistics —industries where travel is essential and risks are varied,” he said. “But we’re also seeing brokers who don’t traditionally focus on travel starting to enter the space.”
The CEO sketched some of the risks corporate travellers face. He mentioned standard risks including medical expenses, trip cancellation and disruption and lost baggage. Also, less likely issues such as political instability or security concerns leading to evacuation.
He said the newer adaptable travel offerings through brokers go further and can cover replacing key staff mid-trip and providing management support services as part of the policy. Batchelar said these travel offerings are also adaptable across very different business sectors and extend into markets where there are few or no offerings from the bigger insurers. “We’ve structured it to be as relevant for a CFO flying to Singapore as it is for an engineer heading to a remote mining site in Australia or Worldwide,” he said. “We cover white- and blue-collar occupations across all industries including where the usual markets have no appetite.”
Batchelar said insurance offerings in the corporate travel space are still a mixture of directly sold and broker led, but the sector has changed significantly in recent years.
“What makes the corporate travel market interesting right now is how much it’s evolved,” he said. “The old ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach is being replaced with customised solutions.”
For brokers, he said offering better service is key to taking advantage of the opportunities. That service, said Batchelar, needs to include fast turnaround, clear advice and policy structures that reflect how their clients actually operate.
Other agencies have also identified this opportunity.
“The demand was clear,” said Michelle McKellar from Keystone Underwriting Australia in a recent IB interview. Brisbane-based McKellar said, rather than a separate order of business, travel is a “natural extension” of existing broker offerings to SME clients.
“It adds value, strengthens the relationship, and opens new revenue streams without needing to acquire a brand-new client base,” she said.
Economic pressures are the main reason for lower numbers of summer tourists buying airline tickets, say the reports. Some reports also suggest that anxiety around travel is a contributing factor. For example, last week’s Air India flight AI171 crash, that caused the death of 242 people.
Recent Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data also strongly suggests that the number of Australians travelling overseas for business is on the up.
An ABS release showed that Australian residents made about 840,000 trips during March, an increase on last year of nearly 10% and higher than pre-COVID levels. About 66,800 of those March trips were for business reasons, a strong uptick compared to the same time in previous years.
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