Pool Re was set up in 1993 by the insurance industry in cooperation with the UK government in the wake of the Irish Republic Army (IRA) bombing campaign on the UK mainland. Pool Re is a mutual reinsurer whose members comprise the vast majority of insurers and Lloyd’s syndicates that offer commercial property insurance in Great Britain. Membership affords a guarantee that ensures they can provide cover for losses resulting from acts of terrorism, regardless of the scale of the claims.

Pool Re has launched a new risk self-assessment tool (VSAT™), aimed at medium and large businesses, that will help insureds reduce the cost of their premiums.

The vulnerability self-assessment tool (VSAT™) is co-developed with ARL Partners, and will be available to all Pool Re member insurers for risks falling due on or after April 1.

“Raising awareness of terrorism risk, as well as promoting and incentivising the adoption of proven risk mitigation measures, are core to Pool Re's strategy. VSAT™ is the latest example of this," said Steve Coates, chief underwriting officer at Pool Re. "It has been built to deal with contemporary terrorism threats and provide a framework for policyholders to benchmark their approach to terrorism risk management.

It also aims to improve their approach where necessary and in doing so provide a discount on their premium.”

The company said that the tool will enable Pool Re member insurers to offer a 5 percent premium discount to insureds which implement proven and effective risk mitigation measures. It builds on Pool Re’s collaboration with the National Counter Terrorism Security Office’s Places programme which offers discounts for risks covered by the programme.

Date: 14.02.18

On line assessments

VSAT™ enables you to conduct a security assessment to UK Government and internationally recognised standards. VSAT™ is ideally suited for an organisation that needs to conduct any form of security review across multiple sites that are spread out geographically. VSAT™ will take the user through a series of questions that are designed to identify any key security vulnerabilities and risks. Once the questions have been answered, the user will instantly receive an online report that provides an overall risk rating, a detailed explanation why certain risks may have been highlighted, and suggested mitigating strategies designed to reduce the risk.

Onsite audits

Arl partners have a team of trained and accredited security professionals who are available to conduct any on-site audits or verification visits to quality assure the responses provided on VSAT™. Using methodologies and standards first created by the UK Government for protective security, our consultants can also deploy as part of your team or independently to support or quality assure any security related work that might be required to close off any risks that might have been identified on VSAT™.

Help and advice

At arl partners, we have considerable experience and expertise delivering the highest levels of security in some of the world’s most challenging environments and at some of the most complex critical national infrastructure sites, public venues and retail centres. We are available to help you meet whatever security challenges you might face.