Topic
Legislation / Regulation
Aviva reacts to new Ontario towing restrictions
March 3, 2021 by Greg MeckbachAviva Canada is supporting new provincial towing restrictions on some Toronto area provincial expressways. On some sections of road, a single towing company will be contracted to remove private passenger vehicles that need to be towed, the Ontario government announced…
Letter to the editor: Best Terms — the buyer’s point of view
February 26, 2021 BC Risk & Insurance Manager’s AssociationTo the Editor, We would like to respond to your editorial titled “Regulators, leave subscription policies alone,” dated Dec. 7, 2020. It is true that these are turbulent times in the insurance market, and that insurers have been experiencing losses…
When Economical plans to hold final demutualization vote
February 25, 2021 by Greg MeckbachAn all-policyholders’ vote on demutualization is scheduled this spring, Economical Insurance announced this week. “The process for getting this meeting on the calendar is on track,” said John Bowey, chairman of Waterloo, Ont.-based Economical, in an update posted Feb. 22…
Why this drunk driver couldn’t be sued by victims of a hit-and-run
February 5, 2021 by Greg MeckbachA Saskatchewan motorist who pleaded guilty to impaired driving cannot be sued in the province by victims of a hit-and-run accident that happened in Saskatoon a few hours before the inebriated motorist was pulled over and arrested by police. This…
Risk management lessons from the governor general’s resignation
January 26, 2021 by Greg MeckbachIf a commercial client has any inklings of a toxic workplace, an independent investigation is one way of managing reputational and liability risk, an expert says. The resignations last week of Governor General Julie Payette and her secretary may have…
Open banking in Canada could help insurers with credit scoring
January 20, 2021 by Greg MeckbachOpen banking could give insurers better data for credit scoring, suggests an official with the organization that handles clearing and settlement for banks in Canada. “I think we will see more accurate underwriting and more accurate credit scoring,” Andrew McFarlane,…
What’s missing from driverless vehicle rollout plan
January 19, 2021 by Greg MeckbachDriverless vehicles need to have some way of communicating with police, fire and ambulance responders, an auto manufacturers’ group said in a recent report. First responders have ways of handling situations they encounter in traffic but there are no “common…
RCCAQ reacts to Quebec curfew
January 18, 2021 by Greg MeckbachQuebec’s insurance brokers should not experience any major disruptions as a result of the province-wide evening curfew imposed a week ago, the chair of the Regroupement des cabinets de courtage d’assurance du Quebec (RCCAQ) predicts. The curfew took effect on…
Brokers negotiate major role in this province’s digital auto insurance distribution
January 14, 2021 by Greg MeckbachManitoba’s brokers will provide input on designing a system for online auto insurance in the province and will be involved in every digital transaction, says the provincial broker association. A recently-signed, five-year agreement between Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) and the…
Proposed rule would allow insurers to offer rebates and incentives to Ontarians
January 8, 2021 by Greg MeckbachOntario’s insurance regulator is looking for feedback from the public on a proposal to relax the rules prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts, allowing insurers to offer rebates and incentives to consumers under certain circumstances. “If you talk to insurance companies…
Regulator’s pilot project to start scenario-testing for climate change risks
January 7, 2021 by David GambrillCanada’s solvency regulator has introduced a pilot project in 2021 to conduct scenario testing of the impact of various climate-related risks on financial institutions’ bottom lines. “The first step of the pilot project is to develop a Canada-relevant set of…
The ‘strange and new opportunity’ for insurance from open banking
January 4, 2021 by Greg MeckbachIf Canada proceeds with so-called “consumer-directed finance,” technology firms could potentially get access to consumers’ insurance data, a Microsoft Canada expert told brokers during a recent webinar. The federal finance department appointed its Advisory Committee on Open Banking in 2018.…