For insurance professionals
Ground movement evidence for underwriting, claims, and portfolio teams
Subsidence-exposed business is written and adjusted with almost no information about how insured sites have actually moved. Satellite radar archives close that gap — consistently, retrospectively, and at portfolio scale.
Applications
Where satellite evidence fits your workflow
Underwriting support
Asset-level movement history for referrals and higher-value risks: has this specific site been moving, since when, and how does it compare with its surroundings? Evidence that hazard maps and construction attributes cannot provide.
Portfolio risk screening
Consistent screening of an entire book against processed radar data. Every insured location receives the same treatment; the output is a ranked list of sites that may deserve inspection or referral, with the evidence attached.
Claims investigation support
A dated, independent chronology of measured surface movement at and around a claim location — before and after the alleged onset. Supports investigation timelines without deciding claim outcomes.
Commercial property insurance
Larger schedules, industrial estates, and logistics assets screened for movement history at proposal or renewal, with per-building indicators where measurement density allows.
Catastrophe and accumulation review
Regional deformation patterns — subsidence bowls, mining-affected zones, compacting reclaimed land — mapped across areas of concentrated exposure to inform accumulation and event-response thinking.
Renewal and exposure reassessment
Movement indicators refreshed at renewal: which insured locations changed behaviour since last review? A repeatable, documented input to renewal decisions.
Risk engineering support
Historical movement context that helps risk engineers choose which sites to visit and what to look for when they get there — making expensive site time more productive.
Business value
Why insurers use it
- Better prioritisation of referrals, inspections, and engineering time
- Historical evidence unavailable from any site visit
- Screening that scales to full portfolios at consistent quality
- An independent data source outside the broker/insured information flow
- Improved site selection for costly physical inspection
- Consistent, repeatable portfolio review at every renewal cycle
- Clear technical documentation that stands up to internal review
Honest boundaries
What satellite ground movement analysis can and cannot tell you
Reports are useful precisely because they are honest about their limits. This distinction is stated in every deliverable.
Can help identify
- Measured surface movement at radar-visible locations
- Historical displacement trends, often back to 2014
- Spatial concentration of movement within an area
- Differences between an asset and its surrounding area
- Areas and assets justifying further investigation
Cannot independently determine
- Structural damage or building condition
- The exact cause of movement without supporting data
- Future losses or loss amounts
- Claim liability or validity
- Soil condition without geotechnical data
- Any form of safety certification
Questions insurers ask
Straight answers
Does ground movement mean a building is damaged?
No. Measured surface displacement does not automatically indicate structural damage, and the absence of measured movement does not guarantee absence of risk. Satellite analysis identifies where and how the surface has moved; assessing structural condition requires engineering inspection. Our reports are designed to help prioritise those inspections, not replace them.
Can the analysis identify the cause of subsidence?
Satellite data alone cannot conclusively determine causation. Spatial and temporal patterns can be consistent with certain mechanisms — for example seasonal signals, mining-related settlement, or groundwater-related movement — and we interpret them carefully in context. Confirming cause typically requires geotechnical, geological, hydrological, or engineering investigation.
How much historical data is available?
Sentinel-1 provides free, systematic global coverage from late 2014 onwards, typically every 6–12 days in most regions. Earlier or higher-resolution archives (e.g. TerraSAR-X, COSMO-SkyMed, ERS/Envisat) exist for many areas but vary by location. The data availability review establishes exactly what archive exists for your site.
Can you assess multiple properties?
Yes. Portfolio screening is one of the core services. Locations are screened consistently across a region or country, movement indicators are compiled per asset, and a ranked list highlights sites that may warrant closer review. Results can be delivered as tables, maps, and GIS-compatible formats.
Can the report be used for insurance decisions?
Reports provide independent, documented evidence of historical surface movement that can inform underwriting, claims review, and risk engineering. They are designed to support professional judgement, not replace it — they are not a determination of claim validity, liability, or insurability, and final decisions remain with the insurer and its qualified professionals.
Start a conversation
Start with one postcode, one claim, or one schedule
A pilot on a single location or a small book shows exactly what the data can support for your exposure — before any larger commitment.