Cotality's Strategic Shift: Pioneering Solutions for Climate-Based Risks

In a strategic move underscored by a rebranding effort, Cotality, previously known as CoreLogic, is advancing its capabilities in addressing climate-based risks. The company, renowned for its property information, data, and analytics offerings, recently underwent a transformation that includes a new brand identity, logo, and tagline. This revamped image reflects Cotality's ambition to extend its reach beyond financial services within the mortgage sector to becoming a thought leader in the property domain. As Garret Gray, the President of Insurance Solutions at Cotality, stated, this change embodies a revolutionary direction for the organization. A significant facet of this shift is demonstrated in enhancing wildfire risk assessment, influenced by recent disasters in Los Angeles.

Cotality’s commitment to innovation focuses on enhancing its insurance capabilities with a people-centric approach. Gray emphasized the significance of prioritizing the individuals beyond the physical structures involved. By optimizing property data utilization, Cotality aims to streamline operations for both policyholders and professionals using their tools. An innovative initiative is the integration of voice and image technologies to facilitate property evaluations. This new apparatus allows property assessors to examine properties while verbally describing and photographing essential elements, transforming these inputs into precise assessments. This approach minimizes manual intervention, allowing stakeholders to concentrate more on client needs. Another groundbreaking development is their wildfire risk scoring system, crafted with insights gained from the disastrous wildfires in Los Angeles. This system addresses the propensity of structures to act as fuel in urban fires, a factor previously overlooked in risk assessments.

Reflecting on the escalating threat of hailstorms, Cotality expands its focus beyond wildfires to tackle these intensifying climate risks. As noted by industry reports, severe convective storms, including hail, contributed to substantial insured losses globally in 2024. Gray highlighted the complexity posed by hail damage, which isn’t always immediately apparent. Often, damages surface from past storms, causing current insurers to bear undue expenses. To mitigate this, Cotality is developing a sophisticated hail damage analysis tool to accurately verify whether storm damages can be attributed to current or previous events. By applying advanced property data, meteorological forensics, and AI technology, they deliver fast and precise damage assessments.

Looking ahead, Cotality aspires to enhance their global catastrophe models by June. With an emphasis on artificial intelligence, the company is innovating their estimation processes to bolster accuracy and efficiency. New AI functionalities, such as predictive algorithms for estimating line items, will equip property professionals with timely and accurate project scopes. Additionally, Cotality is introducing large language models, akin to ChatGPT, offering users seamless access to all pertinent data. At the core of these advancements lies human-centered innovation, aimed at simplifying life for users. As Gray articulates, every tool developed by Cotality contributes to an enhanced ease of living for its clientele.