American European Insurance Group strengthens multi-peril underwriting with ZestyAI. Insurer selects AI models for water, hail, and wind to drive disciplined growth and improve exposure management ZestyAI today announced that American European Insurance Group (AEIG) has selected its suite of regulatory-approved AI models to enhance underwriting, pricing, and exposure management across its multi-state property portfolio. Through the ZestyAI platform, AEIG has adopted models for non-weather water (Z-WATER), hail (Z-HAIL), and wind (Z-WIND), along with Z-PROPERTY to deliver property-level risk insight. ZestyAI's models are built, trained, and validated on carrier-contributed loss data and analyze the interaction between property characteristics, environmental conditions, and peril behavior to predict claim frequency and severity at the individual property level. Carriers apply these insights at new business and renewal to sharpen risk selection, improve pricing alignment, and manage portfolio concentration. ZestyAI's models have secured regulatory approvals that enable transparent and defensible use in underwriting and pricing. "As we operate across states with varied exposure profiles, we need consistent, property-level insight into what drives losses across wind, hail, and non-weather water," said Steve Hartman, President and CEO of AEIG. "ZestyAI gives us the precision to align underwriting and pricing with expected loss performance, support our agent partners with greater transparency, and maintain disciplined growth. Corporate experience alone is no longer sufficient to intelligently compete in a crowded marketplace, and the ability to leverage both traditional and non-traditional data in best-in-class account underwriting and pricing is a requirement for sustained profitability." "Regional insurers like AEIG are balancing expansion with the need to stay highly disciplined in how they evaluate property risk," said Attila Toth, Founder and CEO of ZestyAI. "By grounding underwriting and pricing decisions in verified, property-level intelligence, AEIG can expand across diverse exposures with confidence while protecting portfolio performance."

Regional insurers adopt ZestyAI Property models. Harford Mutual and AEIG are using analytics to strengthen underwriting and exposure management. Anthony R. O'Donnell // March 13, 2026 (Image source: ZestyAI homepage.) Harford Mutual Insurance Group (Bel Air, Md.) and American European Insurance Group (AEIG, Freehold, N.J.) have adopted property risk models from ZestyAI (San Francisco) to enhance underwriting analysis and exposure management across their property portfolios. Harford Mutual has implemented the ZestyAI platform to strengthen property-level intelligence across its commercial insurance portfolio in the Mid-Atlantic and Southern United States. The insurer is using ZestyAI's Roof Age and Z-PROPERTY models to analyze roof characteristics, materials, condition and surrounding risk factors. The models combine aerial imagery and building permit data to help insurers evaluate property risk at the structure level. "With ZestyAI, we have verified property-level intelligence that changes how we evaluate and manage risk," says Wayne Gearhart, SVP and COO, Harford Mutual Insurance Group. "The platform improves our visibility into exposure across the portfolio and supports disciplined growth in our commercial book." American European Insurance Group has adopted multiple ZestyAI models to strengthen underwriting and pricing decisions across its multi-state property portfolio. The insurer is implementing models for non-weather water, hail, wind and property characteristics to support underwriting analysis and exposure management in states including New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Nevada and Arizona. "As we operate across states with varied exposure profiles, we need consistent, property-level insight into what drives losses across wind, hail and non-weather water," says Steve Hartman, President and CEO, American European Insurance Group. "These models provide the precision needed to align underwriting and pricing with expected loss performance." ZestyAI applies computer vision and machine learning to aerial imagery and property data to evaluate risk factors at the individual structure level. "Regional insurers expanding across multiple markets must maintain discipline in how they evaluate property risk," says Attila Toth, Founder and CEO, ZestyAI. "Property-level intelligence can help insurers strengthen underwriting decisions and manage portfolio resilience." Harford Mutual Insurance Group reported more than $446 million in direct written premium in 2025 and distributes products through independent agents across 12 states and Washington, D.C. The insurer is rated A (Excellent) by AM Best.

The Silicon Valley innovation that could help landlords cut soaring insurance costs. It may sound like a creation from a science fiction movie, but digital twin technology has been around for a while. It's used in a variety of industries, from manufacturing to medical and the military. However, its latest application is particularly relevant to real estate investors, as it could dramatically reduce the cost of soaring home insurance premiums. Insurance costs in climate-challenged areas like Florida and California have escalated dramatically in recent years. Last year, a Silicon Valley-based company composed of tech veterans launched Stand Insurance to help address the issue. The company used artificial intelligence (AI)-generated digital twin technology to create a lifelike 3D model of a home to help predict outcomes in real-life scenarios should an extreme climate event, such as a wildfire or hurricane, occur. Other insurers partner with digital twin specialists such as the CoStar-owned Matterport and ZestyAI. A new chapter for hard-to-insure properties. The result of dramatic insurance losses has led to the exodus of many insurance companies from California and Florida, making these places hard to insure. "Traditional ways to price insurance don't work in an environment that's so unpredictable," Stand co-founder and CEO Dan Preston told The Wall Street Journal in 2024 when the company was launched, referring to climate-related risks. In October, the innovative insurer raised $35 billion in a Series B funding with a view to expanding operations from California to hurricane-ravaged Florida, Realtor.com reported. Stand is not for everyone or every home. It only covers homes in California valued between $2 million and $10 million, the Wall Street Journal reports. For a $3 million home in a high wildfire risk region, coverage could cost $12,000 to $15,000 with Stand, Preston said. Meanwhile, on its website, ZestyAI purports to offer real-time insights for over 150 million U.S.-based properties. "Strictly science-based" Unlike conventional insurance companies, Stand and ZestyAI take a strictly science-based approach to risk assessment, rather than the traditional location and dwelling type used by most insurers - i.e., "a flood zone and a wood structure with vinyl siding," etc. Both companies, however, go deeper, creating a 3D digital replica that factors in construction, foliage, and surrounding topography; simulates extreme weather events; and formulates a bespoke insurance policy based on that simulation. In addition to climate-related claims, ZestyAI recently launched Z-WATER, which uses AI to predict the frequency and severity of non-weather water and freeze claims, such as burst pipes, for every property in the country. Kumar Dhuvur, co-founder and chief product officer of ZestyAI, said in a statement: "The landscape of non-weather water claims is shifting, with a concerning trend towards increased claim severity. The rising cost of building materials and labor has inflated claim payouts. Additionally, the interconnected nature of our homes, with open floor plans, finished basements, and high-value electronics, means water damage can have a significantly higher price tag." Digital twin tech is increasingly prevalent. You are likely already familiar with digital twin real estate technology. Matterport uses digital twins in its latest upgrade to showcase houses and buildings across its listing sites, such as Homes.com and Loop.net. Zillow has something similar with its 3D Home app. Digital twin technology takes much of the guesswork out of insurance, speeding up claim processing, eliminating fraud, and offering insurance carriers a greater basis for underwriting, potentially leading to lower premiums, according to software developer Fingent and insurance trade publication Risk & Insurance. A $149 billion industry. By 2030, the digital twin market in insurance and financial services is projected to exceed $149 billion as the industry adapts to it. According to Realtor.com's 2025 Housing and Climate Risk Report, about 1 in 4 homes currently face severe or extreme climate risk. Fannie Mae CEO Priscilla Almodovar told Fortune that each year since 2021, the U.S. has averaged 22 natural disasters with damage exceeding $1 billion, indicative of the growing problem posed by extreme weather. In the 1980s, the average was three per year. "A tailor-made action plan" Homeowners who follow Stand's guidance, including wildfire-proofing measures, are eligible for insurance with premium discounts. "That basically tells us what the vulnerabilities are that you need to remedy," CEO Dan Preston said, as reported by the Los Angeles Times. Fighting insurers to get paid. Digital twin technology could prove pivotal for real estate investors in the fight against insurers to receive payouts. The end-to-end virtual documentation reduces disputes, as insurance companies and owners can conduct a virtual "walk-through" and agree on the facts together, according to a Matterport blog. Additionally, the software company's features, such as legal-grade metadata, help twin models in litigation, making them a valuable resource for small landlords who cannot afford expensive legal battles. Practical steps for landlords to lower insurance. Before using digital twin technology. * Perform a risk audit: Walk your property with a licensed inspector or insurance expert to identify vulnerabilities. * Invest in prevention: Take the expert's recommendations and perform the relevant upgrades to your home. Photograph and log all improvements. With digital twins. * Digitize your property: Use widely available tools like Matterport or Hover to create a 3D model of your home. A clear virtual record helps insurers verify upgrades and conditions. * Document every upgrade: Upload proof of mitigations - such as roof reinforcements, flood barriers, and electrical upgrades - into your twin for validation. Provide evidence of the enhancements from contractors, including certificates of work and inspection reports. * Contact insurers that work with digital twin tech: Insurance companies such as Stand that use digital twin technology can run simulations using your information to offer quotes. * Ask for resilience credits: Ask for credits for verified safety measures. Ensure these are factored into your final quote. * Automate maintenance logs: Some digital twin platforms let you track maintenance events and inspections, helping you negotiate lower rates over time. Final thoughts. No home is entirely weather- or disaster-proof, but having some insurance is better than none, and having less expensive insurance is better than exorbitant coverage that kills cash flow. Also, touting robust safety features in disaster-prone areas is attractive to potential renters. As extreme weather incidents increase in the U.S., the insurance issue will no longer be restricted to states with lots of natural disasters, like Florida and California. If landlords wish to run a safe and successful business, securing their first line of defense - a thorough, effective, and affordable insurance policy - is paramount.