Insurtech Hippo snags first ever chief claims officer from Hiscox

US insurtech focused on the home insurance market  Hippo has hired its first chief claims officer from specialist global insurer Hiscox.

Grace Hanson (pictured) will join the company in January 2022 and will oversee the growth of Hippo’s claims organisation, and help extend its use of technology and data to increase claims efficiency, as the company expands to reach more than 90 percent of the US homeowners market this year.

Hanson was previously the chief claims officer for Hiscox where she's said to have brought significant change to its claims function. Hanson has also built deep experience with insurtech companies as SVP chief claims officer of Homesite Insurance, a digital homeowner insurer.

“ Hippo is at the forefront of the customer-first approach in the home insurance space, leveraging cutting-edge technology to anticipate and solve homeowner problems before they emerge, and guiding them when they experience a loss,” said Hanson. “Protecting the home is a passion of mine and I’m excited to build on Hippo’s innovative successes to push the bar for customer experience in claims and take care of our customers when they need us most.”

Rick McCathron, president of Hippo, said: “ Hippo has done an exceptional job of modernizing the customer flow, risk mitigation through the use of IoT devices, and enhancing automation of the underwriting process; all of which create a delightful customer experience. As Hippo takes the next step in becoming a holistic home protection partner for our customers, we are investing the same level of technology and innovation into the claims handling process to maintain a high bar and commitment to customer satisfaction.”

“To Hippo, the best claims experience is not just managing a claim quickly and efficiently, but helping homeowners avoid the claim entirely,” McCathron added. “When you have someone with such a deep institutional background as Grace, who also understands the rate of change in the industry, she can absolutely help guide us in the areas of preventative, proactive services that help avoid that claim from happening. Her contributions to the company will transcend the claims function and it’s our belief that she will add value in almost every aspect of our company.”

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