Topic
Catastrophes
Powerful earthquake shakes Mexico City; workers evacuate buildings
May 8, 2014 THE ASSOCIATED PRESSMEXICO CITY – A strong earthquake on the Pacific coast of Mexico shook the capital on Thursday, sending frightened office workers streaming into the streets away from high-rise buildings. The 6.4-magnitude temblor in southern Guerrero state had an epicenter about…
FirstOnSite Restoration launches new mobile app for contacting response centre
May 8, 2014 by Canadian UnderwriterFirstOnSite Restoration has launched a mobile applications to allow the disaster restoration provider to connect with customers 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Developed by the firm’s in-house technology group, new app is available for Android, iPhone and…
Major drop in net income for Economical Insurance in Q1 after severe winter weather
May 7, 2014 by Canadian UnderwriterEconomical Insurance’s first quarter 2014 net income of $1 million declined dramatically over the same period of 2013, when it saw a $26.9 million result. Severe winter weather also caused the Waterloo, Ont.-based insurer’s combined ratio to increase to 105.5%…
Allstate reports cat losses of $445 million for Q1, net income of $600 million
May 7, 2014 by Canadian UnderwriterAllstate Corp. has reported net income of $600 million for the first quarter of 2014, down from $709 million in the first three months of 2013. Net income available to common shareholders reported for the quarter was $587 million. Operating…
Swiss Re reports $1.2 billion net income for Q1
May 7, 2014 by Canadian UnderwriterA “benign natural catastrophe experience” helped Swiss Re post net income of $1.2 billion for the first quarter of 2014, although that result is a decrease from the $1.4 billion the reinsurer saw in Q1 last year. Property and casualty…
Severe U.S. weather likely first billion-dollar economic loss event for 2014
May 7, 2014 by Canadian UnderwriterSevere weather and flash flooding in the United States last month likely were the year’s first billion-dollar economic loss event, Impact Forecasting, the catastrophe model development arm of Aon Benfield said Wednesday. In its monthly global recap report, the firm…
Global insurance rates decline in first quarter of 2014: Marsh
May 6, 2014 by Canadian UnderwriterGlobal insurance rates declined in the first quarter of the year, mainly driven by softening property rates, Marsh said in its Global Insurance Market Quarterly Briefing, released this week. Rates tracked by the Marsh Risk Management Global Insurance Index declined…
New Zealand offers unemployed cash to move to quake ravaged city
May 6, 2014 by Canadian UnderwriterWELLINGTON, New Zealand – Unemployed New Zealanders are being offered cash by the government to move to the earthquake-damaged city of Christchurch and join in the rebuilding effort. The government announced Tuesday it would pay welfare recipients 3,000 New Zealand…
Earthquake cracks walls and roads, damages temples in north Thailand; no casualties reported
May 5, 2014 Thanyarat Doksone, THE ASSOCIATED PRESSBANGKOK, Thailand – A strong earthquake shook northern Thailand and Myanmar on Monday evening, smashing windows, cracking walls and roads and damaging Buddhist temples. No casualties were reported. The airport in Chiang Rai, a northern Thai city near the epicenter…
Strong earthquake jolts Tokyo region, few injuries reported
May 5, 2014 THE ASSOCIATED PRESSTOKYO – A strong earthquake jolted Tokyo early Monday, rattling windows and nerves though there were no initial reports of major damage. The national broadcaster NHK, citing local authorities, said 17 people were reported injured, some of them from falls…
Fiery train wreck in Virginia heightens fire chiefs’ concerns about crude oil dangers
May 2, 2014 Alan Suderman and Larry O'Dell, THE ASSOCIATED PRESSLYNCHBURG, Va. – Across the state on the same rail line where a train loaded with highly combustible crude oil derailed, a fire chief sees the potential for a nightmare scenario: A blaze his crews don’t have the means to…
Cautionary note: top Canadian scientists urge go slow approach to fracking
May 1, 2014 Bob Weber, THE CANADIAN PRESSA report from a panel of top Canadian scientists is urging a go-slow approach to the booming industry of hydraulic natural gas fracking. So little is known about the long-term impacts of extracting gas by fracturing rock beds with high-pressure…