Topic
Catastrophes
Income disparity, extreme weather top risks over the next decade
January 16, 2014 by Canadian UnderwriterIncome disparity is the risk seen as most likely to have an impact on the world going into 2014, while extreme weather events were also a top concern, according to a new report from the World Economic Forum. The report…
Time to ‘aggressively phase out’ old, unsafe tank cars carrying oil, says CN
January 14, 2014 Bruce Cheadle, THE CANADIAN PRESSOTTAWA – The railway industry wants to “aggressively phase out” older model tank cars that have been implicated in several recent accidents, the head of CN Rail’s safety division told an industry forum Monday. But the consensus at the day-long…
Evacuees return home four days after New Brunswick derailment, trains running
January 13, 2014 Kevin Bissett, THE CANADIAN PRESSPLASTER ROCK, N.B. – The first freight train returned to service Saturday on a rail line that was the scene of a fiery derailment in New Brunswick as all but one couple in an evacuation zone were allowed to return…
‘Strong investor demand’ in 2013 for cat bonds: Aon Benfield Securities
January 13, 2014 by Canadian UnderwriterThere was “strong investor demand” in catastrophe bonds in the fourth quarter of 2013, with a total of US$7.5 billion in new cat bonds issued during the calendar year, according to a recent report from Aon Benfield Securities. As of…
Residents displaced by train derailment still don’t know when they can go home
January 10, 2014 THE CANADIAN PRESSWAPSKE, N.B. – Three days after they were evacuated from their houses, residents of a small community in northwestern New Brunswick still don’t know when they’ll be able to go home. About 150 people were told to leave Wapske on…
Cracked wheel, broken rail at site of New Brunswick train derailment
January 9, 2014 THE CANADIAN PRESSPLASTER ROCK, N.B. – The federal Transportation Safety Board says their preliminary investigation into the train derailment in northwestern New Brunswick has found a cracked wheel and a broken rail but it’s too early to say what caused the train…
Premiums likely to rise as insurers forced to pay up for massive storms
January 8, 2014 Romina Maurino - THE CANADIAN PRESSTORONTO – Home owners should prepare to pay more for property insurance as the severe weather trend that has battered the country during the past year is expected to continue. ”There are more and more storms happening, and we’re seeing…
Aon Benfield Securities places $250 million cat bond protecting against U.S., Australia earthquakes
January 8, 2014 by Canadian UnderwriterAon Benfield Securities, the investment banking division of Aon Benfield, announced Tuesday that it has successfully underwritten and placed a $250 million catastrophe bond protecting against United States and Australia earthquakes, as well as Australia cyclones. The cat bond was issued…
CN to do aerial surveillance of derailment to determine source of fire
January 8, 2014 Kevin Bissett, THE CANADIAN PRESSPLASTER ROCK, N.B. – Officials with CN were planning to do an aerial surveillance of a train carrying propane and crude oil that derailed in northwestern New Brunswick to try to determine the source and extent of an ongoing fire,…
Safety questions at forefront after fiery oil train derailment in North Dakota
January 2, 2014 Dave Kolpack and James MacPherson, THE ASSOCIATED PRESSCASSELTON, N.D. – A fiery oil train derailment’s near-miss of a small North Dakota town had its mayor angrily calling for federal officials to do more to guarantee the safety of the nation’s growing shipment of oil by rail. Government…
Icy Finish
January 1, 2014 Glenn McGillivray, Managing Director, Institute for Catastrophic Loss ReductionIt looked like Canada’s natural catastrophe story for 2013 was just about told when the ice storm mere days before the year’s close added the chapter, “It ain’t over till it’s over.” Some day, there will be another major wind or ice storm, demanding that discussions begin now about how much should be spent to guard against what may amount to fairly rare events.
$31 million in insured losses from summer earthquakes in central New Zealand
December 19, 2013 by Canadian UnderwriterTotal insured losses from the central New Zealand earthquakes this past July and August was $31.1 million (all figures in New Zealand dollars), the Insurance Council of New Zealand (ICNZ) reported Thursday. Most damaging was the Aug.16 earthquake, accounting for…