The Lloyd’s Market Association (LMA) anticipates 2026 will be a “year of significant transition” particularly in claims management and the market’s business planning approach amid softening rates and new regulatory expectations.
lma-lloyds-logoThe Association expects to see significant shifts in 2026 in three key areas: technology adoption, data standards, and shared connection platforms.
LMA considered the rigorous enforcement of ACORD-compliant data standards key for its strategy, as well as the wider adoption of the CoreData Record (CDR).
This standardisation is expected to span claims delegated authority and the underwriting.
Joe Brace, Operations Director for the Lloyd’s Market Association, stated: In 2026, the LMA will be focused on ensuring the continued rollout and adoption of the CDR across the vendor ecosystem. The Data Council and its work continue to be central to our market, because, as data solutions proliferate, they can only succeed if they are able to interact and share a common data language.
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“In simple terms, our market has agreed that we will all speak a common tongue, and we need to teach all our digital offspring that language at whatever stage of development they are at.”
The LMA aims to expand this “common language” by the end of 2026, to cover claims and delegated authority. The goal is to establish a unified method to tag and record every aspect of a risk’s lifecycle, facilitating seamless data flow between market participants.
Another shift the LMA expects to take centre stage in the market next year are smaller, ‘quick-win’ projects with a move towards multiple peer-to-peer technology adoptions.
The strategy for 2026 will split focus across Blueprint Two, data standards, and shared enabling activities.
Brace advocates for a “modular approach,” encouraging suppliers and claims departments to pursue smaller initiatives that deliver “quick wins for the market” than waiting for a single, all-encompassing solution.
“More and more brokers are launching their own placing platforms and we encourage the development of a healthy marketplace in placement and claims. Ideally, all platforms would use the common standards we have agreed and adhere to them – imagine if we interpreted traffic standards differently. The benefits are huge: when we all use the same data standards and flows, we can all connect in multiple ways, unlocking an explosion of peer-to-peer connectivity,” Brace stated.
Adding: “I am excited to see this market move towards more peer-to peer connections and the organic evolution that is likely to flow from it. Brokers will lead this charge – they drive business flow and while change is never easy, the prize of evolving our business is worth it.”
On a separate note, in 2026, the LMA will help the market implement regulator-required operational resilience testing programs.
The LMA is supporting this by putting together a coordinated vendor testing plan that will run across groups of managing agents in the Lloyd’s market.
Operational resilience has been a huge investment for the market, with leadership from Lloyd’s and the LMA, and 2026 will mark the first full test cycles.
Joe Brace, Operations Director at the LMA, commented: “It is great to see our market succeed in regulatory and testing delivery. We know that everyone will have to dedicate significant time to the operational resilience testing programme in 2026, but we are in a good position to see it effectively implemented and embedded into our market, ultimately looking after our customers.”
Finally, the MLA hopes to see wider modular testing and continued resolution of Blueprint Two challenges. Testing remains a key market focus, requiring continued support for Blueprint Two solutions and encouraging market input and feedback on design and implementation.
Brace said: “The LMA supports Velonetic and Lloyd’s as they look to close out this long-running project. Our plan is to work closely with Velonetic to make sure any data transition is robust and secure, customer impact is thoughtfully handled, investments are aligned to long-term value, adoption timelines are realistic and impacts are thought through for all participants.”
