This article walks through how Claims teams typically use GEO across the life of an event, from an early reserving estimate through to reviewing MIS's accuracy once your own claims data has come in. Each step links out to the feature articles that cover the details.
Before you start
This article assumes your organisation is already sharing portfolio data with MIS and that Damage Factors are configured, either your own or the MIS baseline. If either of those isn't set up yet, start with [Sharing Your Data with MIS] and [Policy Insights] before working through the steps below.
Every figure referenced here, exposure, reserving ranges, location counts, is only as current as the last time your portfolio was shared with MIS. Check the As At Date shown on the Insights tab before relying on a number for a live decision.
This document sits a level above the feature articles it links to. For field-by-field detail on how a table or layer works, see the linked article rather than expecting it to be repeated here.
Estimating reserves in the first 24-72 hours
Once an Exposure Layer is published, Location Insights and Policy Insights let you put a range on likely reserves well before claims start to land.
Open Policy Insights and confirm which Damage Factor set is active. Start with the MIS baseline if you haven't built your own yet.
Sort the table by Maximum Exposure to see your worst-case policies first.
Use the Minimum and Maximum Exposure columns as your initial reserving range. Both update automatically as MIS publishes new layers, so revisit them as the event moves from Exposure to Claims to Building Level Assessment.
[SCREENSHOT: Policy Insights table sorted by Maximum Exposure descending, showing the Minimum and Maximum Exposure columns]
See [Policy Insights] for how the underlying calculation works, including how Damage Factors drive the estimate.
Assigning and delegating adjusters by triaged region
Once you have a sense of where the worst exposure sits, GEO can help direct adjuster resource to the right places rather than spreading it evenly across the whole footprint.
Filter Location Insights by Maximum Exposure or by Assessment category to isolate your highest-priority locations, then click Show on map to see where they cluster.
Turn on Operational Layers (Evacuation Zones, Infrastructure, Road Closures) to check which of those clusters are actually accessible before you send anyone out.
Use the resulting map view to allocate adjusters to regions rather than working policy by policy.
[SCREENSHOT: Map view with Location Insights filtered to high-exposure locations, clustered, with Evacuation Zones and Road Closures toggled on]
See [Understanding GEO Layers] for more on Operational Layers.
Assessing individual locations
When a specific claim needs a closer look, the following sequence covers most cases:
Prioritise with Insights. Filter Location Insights to the policy or account in question, still with Damage Factors applied, so you're looking at the locations most likely to be driving the loss.
Check the geocoding. Click the location point and check whether it's mapped to co-ordinates, street address, or zip code. If the pin looks approximate, use Location Search to drop a precise pin on the actual address instead.
Confirm damage with imagery. Compare pre- and post-event aerial or satellite imagery for a top-down view, then use Oblique Imagery for the sides of the property and any damage that isn't visible from directly above. See [Assessment Scales] for what each damage category actually means before you record a conclusion.
Measure what you're looking at. Use the Measure Distance and Measure Area tools to quantify things like flood proximity to a water source, or the extent of a damaged roof.
[SCREENSHOT: Location Insights panel showing the geocoding resolution field, alongside a pin dropped via Location Search on the same address]
[SCREENSHOT: Slider map view comparing pre- and post-event aerial imagery for a single property, with Oblique Imagery shown alongside]
[SCREENSHOT: Measure Area tool outlining the damaged section of a roof]
If a location needs more detail than GEO can provide, MIS Investigations can source bespoke imagery and a written assessment for that specific address.
See [Location Insights], [Location Search], [Oblique Imagery], [Map Controls], and [MIS Investigations].
Assessing conflict-driven claims
Conflict events don't always follow the imagery-led process above. Satellite and aerial coverage can be restricted over active conflict zones, so the sequence in this case usually relies on Incident Points and MIS's contextual reporting instead of a pre/post imagery comparison.
Use Incident Points on the event report to identify where strikes or damage have been reported, and cross-reference these against your own locations rather than waiting on a damage grid.
Read the Monitoring Report or contextual report attached to the event. MIS includes a confidence level on the sources used, since evidence in these situations is often indirect.
Where imagery genuinely isn't available, treat proximity to a reported Incident Point as your primary triage signal rather than an Assessment category, and confirm individual locations through MIS Investigations if a claim needs to be substantiated further.
[SCREENSHOT: Conflict event report showing Incident Points plotted against a small cluster of insured locations]
Post-event claims analysis
Once your own claims data has come in, MIS can run a retrospective comparison against the layers used during the response. This checks how quickly assessments were published relative to landfall, how MIS's damage categories lined up against confirmed claims, and what share of your total loss value had a matching MIS assessment.
[SCREENSHOT: Example Post-Event Claims Analysis summary, showing headline accuracy statistics for a past response]
This isn't a self-serve GEO feature. Contact [email protected] to set one up, the format is tailored to your data and claims process.
Worked example
Take a fictional event on the Demo portfolio, similar in shape to the Hurricane Milton Demo event available on GEO. An Exposure Layer publishes overnight showing a large swathe of coastal Florida affected.
Policy Insights, selected to Wind, shows a policy on the Demo portfolio (contract ID EB0856271C) with a Minimum Adjusted Exposure of $510,000 and a Maximum of $1,229,717. This becomes the basis for an initial reserving range for that policy.
Filtering Location Insights to that policy shows two locations, one flagged Light Damage and one Destroyed on the Exposure Layer.
The Destroyed location's geocoding resolution shows as Zip Code rather than Street Address, so Location Search is used to drop a precise pin on the actual property.
Pre- and post-event aerial imagery confirms roof loss consistent with the Destroyed assessment of the actual location. Oblique Imagery shows wall damage on the north face that wasn't visible from directly above.
The adjuster assigned to that region is prioritised toward this location first, based on the combination of Maximum Exposure and confirmed Destroyed status.
FAQ
Should I use Policy Insights or wait for actual claims before reserving?
Policy Insights is designed as an early triage figure, not a final loss estimate. Treat it as a range to work with in the first days of an event, then refine as claims data replaces it.
Our adjusters are being sent to areas that turn out to be low priority. What should we check?
Confirm you're filtering on the Claims Layer once it's published rather than the earlier Exposure Layer, the Claims Layer reflects confirmed damage and will usually change the priority picture.
Can we get a post-event analysis for every event we respond to?
Yes, though most clients run this for major events rather than every response. Reach out to Solutions to scope what's useful for your team.
What should we do if imagery isn't available for a conflict event?
Fall back to Incident Points and the contextual report rather than waiting for imagery that may not come. See the conflict-driven claims section above.
Related articles
[Sharing Your Data with MIS]
[Location Insights]
[Policy Insights]
[Location Search]
[Oblique Imagery]
[Map Controls]
[Assessment Scales]
[MIS Investigations]