Oliver, would you give us an overview about the risks covered via Albatros in terms of liability insurance and about your areas of responsibility?

Yes, of course. At Albatros Corporate Broker, I am working in the "Industry" division and in the "Corporate Broker Liability" team. Our division looks after the Lufthansa group's insurance programmes and the dedicated individual covers for Lufthansa group members in the lines of general liability (non-aviation), freight forwarders liability, automobile insurance, duty travel motor insurance, legal protection, D&O and cyber and keeps them up to date. In addition, we also take care of the claims handling in the related areas. 

My personal area of responsibility includes above all the topics of (IT) third party liability insurances for pure financial losses, motor fleet insurance including duty travel motor insurance, legal protection, and freight forwarders liability. While the motor insurance programme is managed exclusively for vehicles subject to registration in Germany, the D&O and non-aviation liability programmes are international insurance programmes.

In general, international liability insurance programmes area are very widespread among globally operating companies and in particular necessary – as well due to compliance reasons. The complex issue is to achieve a consistent, extended and cost-efficient insurance cover worldwide, but at the same time very different local legislations and specific local coverages must be taken into account. In this respect, we generally try to install a local cover for a foreign subsidiary in the country concerned - especially outside the EEA – based on "Best Local Standard" principles via a local insurer and to ensure a broad excess cover out of Germany – as long as legally permitted.

That sounds exciting – can you provide some background information?

A company wants its insurance cover to be as consistent and coordinated as possible worldwide - in terms of coverage, costs and claims handling. In order to reflect the local legislation and local market conditions, individual local policies are implemented abroad which guarantees local capacities, a risk-adequate scope of insurance and local contract / claims management for the company based abroad. The local legislation can vary from country to country, and country-specific compulsory insurance and tax issues around premium accounting also play a major role - especially against the background of compliance. 

The structure of an international insurance programme could be simplified as a cake with several layers. As an individual company, one would naturally like to own the whole cake, but needs a kind of protective umbrella or excess cover to do so, since, for example, the complete coverage range of the programme cannot be made available in full or at reasonable cost on the respective local insurance market. In this respect, a so-called master cover, has a special role to play.

As the inhouse broker Albatros, we have placed a globally integrated and coordinated general liability programme for the Deutsche Lufthansa AG including all its subsidiaries worldwide (majorities). The leading risk carrier of this programme is an internationally operating insurer who also issues the participating local policies within its worldwide fronting network. To ensure the coordination of the programme, we have mandated local co-brokers in some countries to manage the local policies on site.
 

What is our role for the Lufthansa Group?

As a professional inhouse insurance broker, Albatros acts as the first point of contact for all insurance issues within the Lufthansa Group and aims for placing optimal insurance cover at the best possible conditions for all insured Group companies. Furthermore, we analyse – within our mutual risk dialogues with our customers - the individual risk situation & development or determine the necessary insurance needs of each customer and tailor the existing coverage to any risk changes that may have arisen. On the other hand, we also consider the overall risk situation of the Group as a unit and bundle it within the insurance programmes via a joint risk community. After all, insurance always means balancing risks in the collective. 

In this respect, we see ourselves as part of the risk management within the Lufthansa Group and thus also make an important contribution to risk awareness on the part of the companies. We also support the cost stabilisation within the Group by transferring risks to an insurance solution.
 

What does your work look like in practice? 

I am in close contact with our clients and the insurers on a daily basis, reviewing and discussing current risk developments, contractual liability specification and I am available for professional exchange. Last but not least, we also monitor the individual claims experience within the covers, especially in connection with the "renewals" or the placement of the policies. In addition, there are tasks such as the preparation of insurance certificates or invoices.  

By the way, we have organised our liability team in tandems - related to the individual policies or activities. From our point of view, this is essential, e.g., to maintain the four-eyes-principle, to obtain a further professional perspective, to improve our representation in case of absence, etc.

Currently, at Albatros Corporate Broker we are also involved in a larger project to introduce a new broker software. So, we are definitely challenged in many areas.
 

How do you estimate the risks in the area of liability in the future?

After years of a hardened market, in which insurers were forced to adjust their underwriting guidelines (e.g. by reducing capacities, agreeing on additional cover / country exclusions and increased deductibles, raising minimum premiums, etc.), which was mainly driven by the overall market environment and general conditions, especially due to the economic effects in connection with the Corona pandemic, especially related to the overall claim experience, we are fortunately now experiencing more competition or a certain recovery in some lines of business again. 

Nevertheless, we still see restrictions in insurance coverage and effects on the premium / claims cost situation in individual lines, especially with regard to the topics of inflation and the war in Ukraine.

In addition, individual risk developments within the Lufthansa Group (e.g. by opening new market segments and expanding business models) and the claims experience in the individual policies have a significant influence on our discussions and renewal negotiations with the insurers.

In this respect, we must react very dynamically and flexibly in our renewal negotiations.

Thank you very much for the interview. 

About Oliver Henke 
Oliver Henke has been working for the Delvag Group for more than ten years. After training as an insurance salesman and studying to become an insurance specialist at the end of the 1990s, he previously worked on the insurance side in a variety of underwriting-related positions in Casualty & Motor line of business for large major multinational accounts. He then moved to Albatros Corporate Broker Industry in 2012. In between, he gained experience abroad in Australia and New Zealand. Since then, he has also been in demand among his colleagues as an expert for "Down Under".  

Interview: Andreas Brodesser, Corporate Communications Delvag Group