Overview
Vave takes a data-first approach to underwriting, powered by an algorithmic pricing engine designed to bring automation, efficiency, and speed to the delivery of dynamic insurance products. Since launching in 2019, the company has focused on building a flood offering that can adapt quickly to changing market conditions while delivering real-time quotes that meet the growing complexity of the U.S. E&S market.
As the flood product grew alongside Vave’s expanding distribution network and geographic footprint, the company continued to refine its underwriting appetite and pricing sophistication. Success depended on the ability to monitor risk in real time, leverage high-quality hazard data, and translate those insights into fast, data-driven decisions that could identify the specific segments of the market where Vave could be most competitive.
To support this approach, Vave partnered with KatRisk to integrate high-resolution flood hazard data directly into its underwriting and pricing engine, enabling more precise risk assessment and helping power the continued growth of its flood product.
The Challenge
Vave’s underwriting model depends on real-time, data-driven decision-making. To deliver competitive flood products in a dynamic E&S environment, the company needed hazard intelligence that was:
- Granular at the property level
- Consistently structured across geographies
- Reliable enough to support algorithmic pricing
- Flexible enough to evolve as underwriting appetite refined
Traditional approaches, including reliance on FEMA maps alone, were insufficient, particularly in complex inland flood zones where risk differentiation is critical.
Vave needed a partner that could:
- Provide high-quality flood hazard indicators at scale
- Support fast-paced, automated underwriting workflows
- Deliver transparent methodology aligned with a data-first operating model
- Enable better segmentation of desirable and non-desirable risk
The Solution: KatRisk’s Flood Model
KatRisk provided the high-resolution flood hazard data Vave required to support its algorithmic underwriting engine.
By integrating KatRisk outputs directly into its pricing infrastructure, Vave can now:
- Assess flood risk at a precise, location-specific level
- Incorporate multiple flood risk indicators into premium calculations
- Move beyond zone-based mapping to more refined segmentation
- Monitor and refine underwriting appetite in real time
KatRisk’s transparent methodology and scientifically robust methodology aligned closely with Vave’s internal modeling philosophy, offering a great balance of accuracy and usability. Over time, the relationship has evolved into a strategic partnership, with ongoing collaboration to ensure outputs continue to meet Vave’s evolving underwriting requirements.
The Results
Since integrating KatRisk’s Flood Model into its pricing engine, Vave has seen measurable improvements in underwriting performance and product growth.
Improved risk segmentation
High-quality hazard intelligence has enabled Vave to identify attractive pockets of business that were previously difficult to distinguish.
Enhanced pricing sophistication
Multiple flood indicators provide deeper insight, particularly in inland flood areas where FEMA maps alone lack differentiation.
Scalable geographic expansion
Reliable hazard data across the U.S. has allowed Vave to expand confidently while maintaining disciplined portfolio control.
Stronger competitive positioning
More refined risk selection supports competitive pricing without compromising underwriting discipline.
“High-quality flood hazard data from KatRisk has helped us better segment risk, refine pricing, and identify the exact pockets of business where we can compete most effectively.”
– The Vave Team
KatRisk helps data-driven insurers like Vave translate complex flood hazard intelligence into actionable pricing strategy, supporting both speed and underwriting sophistication at scale.
