Previsico, an InsurTech business spun out from Loughborough University which specialises in modelling flooding in real-time, has completed a successful seed funding round.

It is now targeting insurers, reinsurers, brokers and big data firms that are interested in improving their flood response capabilities.

The firm leverages the latest weather predictions to produce property-level flood ‘nowcasts’ and forecasts. The Cabinet Office, Met Office and Environment Agency have already undertaken pilots of the solution, FloodMap Live, in four UK cities.

Chief executive Jonathan Jackson said: “Following our funding, we are now able to bring our expertise and solutions to the insurance sector.”

He explained that FloodMap can help insurers de-risk policies, especially when customers agree to put up flood defences.

“Other ways insurers can benefit include: adjusting policy pricing (or implementing moratoriums) before storms hit; having an accessibility map so that claims teams can know how to reach properties; understanding where flooding has occurred to provide early indication of total loss amounts, reduce fraud and improve claims efficiency,” added Jackson.

Previsico estimates that it could have saved the UK’s insurance industry at least £130 million on 2015/2016 floods.

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