Eric Anderson

Meet Eric Anderson: Golf’s “Weather” Man

For more than a decade, Vortex Insurance, a weather-risk insurance agency, has been the leader in rain protection for outdoor events.

Second graph, “Bad weather can be risky business for golf courses and events. If you’re a club professional, general manager or tournament organizer, Vortex can protect your revenue and your reputation.

Eric Anderson, Weather Insurance Producer and Golf Industry Specialist, answers questions about weather insurance and it’s rapid growth and acceptance in the golf industry. • • • • •

Q. Eric, tell us a little bit about your background.

A. I played collegiate golf at Augusta University, graduated in 1993, then worked as an assistant professional at Augusta National Golf Club for three years. In 1998, I started brokering weather derivatives and joined Vortex Insurance in 2019.

Q. What is weather insurance?

A. Weather insurance is a risk management tool that helps to financially protect your outdoor event, tournament or business from adverse weather conditions.

Q. Is this a new type of insurance?

A. Weather insurance is called parametric insurance – meaning based on a predetermined index. Over the past decade, as weather recording data has advanced, parametric insurance has become more widely available.

Q. How is parametric weather insurance different from other types of insurance?

A. Parametric insurance guarantees an agreed upon payout once the threshold is triggered as a qualifying event.

Q. How does a policy typically work?

A. Let’s take an hourly rain insurance example. You insure against one inch of rainfall during the hours of your event. If it rains at least that amount during the coverage period, you will be paid the full insurance limit you purchased typically in less than two-weeks.

Q. How is the insurance limit determined?

A. You decide the amount that the event will generate for a charity, or the costs associated with running that event or both. Since you’re not required to ‘insure to value,’ an insurance limit can be set to fit your budget.

Q. Does an event have to be canceled to file a claim?

A. No - the beauty of having parametric weather insurance is that if the threshold is met during the coverage period, regardless of event cancellation, you will receive full payment.

Q. Is the claim processing tedious and time consuming?

A. Just the opposite, which is another attractive aspect about parametric insurance. You have faster, guaranteed payouts when the conditions are met which provides clarity for a seamless claim process - different than traditional indemnity insurance.

Q. Is Vortex weather insurance affordable for smaller tournaments?

A. Yes, Vortex offers a variety of options that fits your specific event needs and budget for either full or partial coverage.

Q. Why should anyone responsible for running a tournament purchase Vortex weather insurance?

A. The thought of losing the money raised for your charity due to a rain event is unfortunate and uncomfortable. You can insure not only the event revenue and costs to run the event, but also the money raised at the dinner from the auction, or any other expected revenue as well.

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