About RMS

RMS introduced the Risk Data Open Standard (RDOS), a modern data schema for the risk modeling community, for open-source development.

When the Camp and Woolsey Fires unleashed unprecedented destruction of life and property in California in 2018, the impact of climate change was clear. The RMS® U.S. Wildfire HD model released in 2019 integrated this intelligence for more actionable insights.

RMS also introduced two new powerful data solutions: the RMS Location Intelligence API, giving underwriters location-specific information compiled from big data simulations of catastrophe events, and the SiteIQ™ application, enabling a deeper understanding of all hazards facing any property.

During Hurricane Harvey, a category 4 storm that landed in Houston, the RMS Event Response team provided detailed flood estimate maps using our soon-to-be-released U.S. flood model. This same year, Hurricane Maria, a category 5 storm, ravaged Puerto Rico, while the Napa and Sonoma wildfires led to the greatest fire losses in history…until they were surpassed the following year.

With cyber risk being named a new top-five catastrophe risk, the company released its first cyber risk model.

Following the Great East Japan (Tohoku) Earthquake Tsunami, the expanding risks associated with natural catastrophes gained awareness, which increased focus on modeling. The RiskLink® Version 11 North Atlantic Hurricane release was a major update that incorporated 20 years of events and $18 billion in claims data.

RMS Chief Research Officer Robert Muir-Wood was a contributing author to the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report released this year. With IPCC and Al Gore receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, the recognition of the impacts of climate change had grown. RMS expanded its focus on how climate change may affect the frequency and/or severity of modeled events.

RMS created the first training program and certification specific to cat modeling, the Certified Catastrophe Risk Analyst (CCRA®). Since its introduction, the designation has gained insurance industry recognition as a symbol of excellence in the field of catastrophe modeling.

In response to the events of 9/11, RMS released its first terrorism model. The company also provided risk analysis for the first-ever terrorism catastrophe bond issued by FIFA to cover the risk of a 2006 World Cup cancellation.

The September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, combined with growing threats to other targets, fundamentally changed our world and brought the risks of terrorism to the forefront. Scientists at RMS got straight to work.

With the initial release of RiskLink® DLM (Detailed Loss Module), the company shifted to a new platform for its modeling and retired the original IRAS software. Modeling was now a standard practice for the insurance industry.

RMS was acquired by Daily Mail and General Trust, a British media company. By this time, RMS models covered 40 territories. The company also released RiskLink® ALM (Aggregate Loss Module), our first modeling software.

IRAS Version 3.2 expanded international coverage with six new earthquake models (Australia, Chile, Guam, Jamaica, Japan, New Zealand), three new typhoon models (Australia, Guam, Japan), two severe convective storm models (U.S., Canada), and the new fire following earthquake model (U.S.). By 1996, the company was called Risk Management Solutions and offered models covering 12 countries.

With the release of IRAS Version 3.0, RMS offered its first hurricane model (and first Windows product). This version also included U.S. earthquake models.

Hurricane Andrew, a Category 5 storm that struck the Bahamas, Florida, and Louisiana, was the most destructive and costliest hurricane at the time. It caused the bankruptcy of 24 insurers and made catastrophe modeling more important.

The Insurance and Investment Risk Assessment System (IRAS) was developed at Stanford by Hemant Shah and Weimin Dong in 1988 as a research project funded by insurers. In 1989, the project was spun off to form Risk Management Software, Inc. With the Loma Prieta Earthquake that year, demand for earthquake insurance was growing, and the company’s first model – IRAS 1.0 for California Earthquake – was in demand.