CEO Scott Kerestesi’s Compelling Cover Story in Nevada Business Magazine
Scott Kerestesi, CEO of Cragin & Pike, is featured on the cover of the latest issue of Nevada Business magazine. Kerestesi and two other well-respected Las Vegas insurance professionals shared their expertise with journalist Jennifer Rachel Baumer in this eye-opening interview.
The topics? How business insurance is evolving to cope with cyberattacks, climate change and terrorism; the latest coverages available; why insurance costs continue to rise and more.
“The insurance industry has been around forever. It started with ships sailing across the ocean with goods and when [there was an event], it took forever for things to happen. When a building burns down it takes six, nine, 12 months to rebuild. Today, with cyberattacks, it’s like, ‘Hey, we’ve been hacked and we need to know what to do and we need to get this fixed ASAP.”
Scott Kerestesi, CEO
Adapting to Change and the Cost of Protection
The world of business insurance is constantly evolving, driven by the ever-changing risks that companies face.
For example, cyberattacks are an omnipresent threat for businesses in the digital age. As companies increasingly rely on technology and data, the potential for cyber vulnerabilities has grown exponentially. In response, the business insurance sector has seen the emergence of cyber insurance or cyber liability, a specialized coverage designed to protect against losses arising from data breaches, ransomware attacks, and other cyber-related risks. The problem is now so pervasive that insurance companies are now hiring cyber security teams, IT specialists, compliance and legal experts, to work on claims after there is an attack.
“The crazy thing about this is, hackers don’t necessarily discriminate based on size of the company or a company’s mission.”
Scott Kerestesi, CEO
The threat of terrorism has also taken on new dimensions in recent years, and can result in devastating financial consequences for a business. Many insurance companies now offer coverage that protects businesses from property damage, business interruption and other losses resulting from acts of terrorism.
But what’s driving up costs? It’s not just inflation. Kerestesi said that, for example, property insurance has suffered losses as an industry. Prior to 2017, there were only two years with $100 billion in total losses globally. Since 2017, every year but two has seen $100 billion in property losses.
Hurricanes, earthquakes, raging wildfires and other catastrophic natural and human- caused events all take their toll.
Global supply-chain disruptions, like those experienced during and after the COVID outbreak, cause higher insurance prices, too. As do costly third-party litigations and private equity-backed plaintiff’s litigation funding.
As our population ages, there is more demand and, ultimately, the more expensive health insurance gets. The costly, new pharmaceuticals that are introduced every day also play a role in increasing costs.
“My dad told me when I got started in this business, insurance is tough. It’s a product that no one understands, everyone always thinks they pay too much for, and you never, ever want to use.”
Scott Kerestesi, CEO
Want to learn more? Read the entire article here at Nevada Business magazine.