The Hartford Steam Boiler and Inspection Company (HSB), part of Munich Re, one of the world’s largest reinsurers which acquired the company in 2009, has received approval from the Federal Aviation Administration to carry out aerial inspections of premises using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) where personal inspection would be either impractical or dangerous, with the intention of helping customers identify exposures, manage risks and prevent loss.

HSB is a leading engineering and technical risk insurer worldwide, but with substantial interest in North America. The company will now be able to use UAVs, or drones, with the property owner’s permission to support its insurance claim and underwriting activities.

According to Jay Jablonski, vice president of HSB Professional Loss Control,

“Drones can save time and money when inspecting properties that are spread out such as thousands of panels on a solar power farm covering many acres. When equipped with sensor technologies, such as visual and infrared cameras, they give our engineers an efficient and powerful tool to analyze risks and system performance.”

HSB have identified that drone inspections would greatly benefit a good number of HSB’s industrial and renewable energy policyholders, the insurance companies HSB supports through property loss control services, and Munich Re, HSB’s parent company.

Founded in 1866 in Hartford, Connecticut, HSB is the biggest provider of equipment breakdown insurance and associated inspection services in North America covering over five million commercial locations. Around half of its workforce, 1200 people, are either engineers, technicians or inspectors.