Weather Data: Free, Abundant, and Almost Never Joined
Weather data is abundant, largely free, historically deep, and directly relevant to a large share of insurance claims. It is also, at most insurers, joined to almost nothing. That combination — enormous relevance, negligible cost, near-zero utilisation — makes it one of the clearest missed opportunities in insurance data. What weather data could be answering Claim validation. A claim reports wind damage on a specific date at a specific address. Was there wind at that location on that date? This is answerable in seconds from public data. Done systematically at first notice of loss, it's one of the highest-yield fraud and error checks available — and it requires no model, just a join. Event response. A hailstorm crosses three districts. Which of your policies are in the footprint? Insurers who can answer immediately mobilise adjusters, warn customers, and set reserves within hours. Insurers who can't find out as the claims arrive over the following fortnight. Reservin...