Insurance Networking News reported that State Farm named California the state with the highest incidence of dog bite claims (369).  Who would have thought we would need a “National Dog Bite Prevention” week to raise awareness around this? Apparently it’s a big issue in the insurance industry with nearly 5 million dog bites in the US costing insurers like State Farm about $90 million on the 3500 claims they serviced.

This brought to mind the recent conversation Forrester senior analyst Ellen Carney had with Xerox regarding the future of insurance.  During that conversation Ellen stated that she believes technology will help insurance firms predict the likelihood of anything from driving accidents to mold in drywall using microchip technology.  She spoke about sensors in cars, appliances, walls, just about anything that could help predict future outcomes.  Could the chip we use to track “Fido’s” whereabouts also help predict our dog’s potential violent tendencies? Maybe I’ll ask her about this during our upcoming Live Webinar on June 14 from 11 am – 12 pm  ET. Register here to join us, free of charge of course.