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News ClaimsInsuranceRisk

Distracted driving sometimes takes a back seat to work priorities, drivers say

July 11, 2022 Canadian Underwriter Staff

Canadians object to distracted driving but a lot of them do it anyway, according to a 2022 distracted driving risk survey from Travelers Canada. A full 77% of those surveyed said distracted driving is ‘very risky and they take every

Judge banging gavel in a courtroom
News ClaimsInsurance

Inflation might not lead to higher claims amounts in Canada

July 8, 2022 Philip Porado

With overall consumer inflation near 40-year highs, can sharply rising claims costs and social inflation be far behind? It’s too soon to tell, an Aon expert tells Canadian Underwriter. Speculation that consumer price inflation might spark social inflation for casualty

Close up of woman hands, arranging patient files
News ClaimsCommercial LinesInsuranceLegal

How the court bolstered an insurer’s exclusion for privacy breach

July 8, 2022 by David Gambrill

Acting recklessly in breaching the confidential medical files of patients effectively falls within a hospital insurer’s commercial policy exclusion for committing an ‘intentional act,’ Ontario’s top court has ruled. The Ontario Court of Appeal found a hospital insurer, the Healthcare

Inflation going up in Canada
News BrokersClaimsInsurance

What the latest inflation measures mean for insurers

July 7, 2022 Philip Porado

Several inflation drivers have increased claims costs for insurers since 2020, but some are less aggressive than expected and a few have yet to register significant impacts, a June report from AON found. Insurers can expect it to cost more

Sewerage system, dirty water discharged into river.
News ClaimsCommercial LinesInsuranceLegalLegislation / RegulationRestoration

Why Intact can’t recover $2.9 million in excess insurance payment

July 7, 2022 by David Gambrill

Intact Insurance has lost its bid to recover $2.9 million it paid above and beyond its $5-million insurance policy limit for cleaning up a 2012 chemical spill in North Bay, Ontario. Ontario’s Court of Appeal rejected Intact’s arguments that it

Indemnity agreement on desk with pen and eye glasses.
News BrokersClaimsCommercial LinesInsuranceLegalRisk

How to advise clients on commercial contract indemnities

July 6, 2022 Michael Carey

Commercial contracts often contain indemnities, and brokers should be prepared to address issues pertaining to indemnities within those contracts. Some clients may ask what an indemnity is. Simply put, it’s a promise to compensate another person for certain costs and

Digitally generated modern and minimalist family house/villa in Nature with garage and a terrace.
News CatastrophesClaimsClimate ChangeInsuranceRisk

Why home insurers are more exposed to NatCats after the pandemic

July 4, 2022 by David Gambrill

When the pandemic, remote work and a hot housing market combined to cause more Canadians to buy homes in suburban and rural areas, home insurers may have become more exposed to NatCat losses, data from a recent Aviva study found

Tesla autopilot
News ClaimsInsuranceLegalLegislation / RegulationRisk

U.S. regulator upgrades Tesla Autopilot crash analysis

June 30, 2022 Philip Porado

A National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) preliminary analysis (PA) into Tesla’s Autopilot system was upgraded to an engineering analysis (EA) earlier this month. The EA will “extend the existing crash analysis, evaluate additional data sets [and] perform vehicle evaluations,”

A person holds the steering wheel of a car with their left hand while their right hand hovers over the horn
News BrokersClaimsInsuranceLegalRisk

Distracted driving accelerates post-pandemic

June 29, 2022 by Alyssa DiSabatino

Ninety-eight per cent of Ontario drivers report witnessing unsafe driving behaviours over the past year — a 3% increase from the year previous — and yet only 58% admit to engaging in dangerous driving behaviours themselves, a CAA South Central

Fire Debris of Houses in a small town with smoke in sky.
News AdjustersCatastrophesClaimsClaims CanadaClimate ChangeConstructionInsuranceRestoration

Why it’s taken a year to get Lytton, B.C.’s post-wildfire rebuild underway

June 29, 2022 by David Gambrill

To the naked eye, not much has changed since Lytton, B.C. was razed by a June 30, 2021 wildfire, causing an estimated $100 million in insured damage. Coming up on the fire’s one-year anniversary, debris-removal work has finally begun for

Two-car auto accident
News ClaimsInsuranceMarkets / Coverages

Have auto premiums, loss ratios returned to pre-pandemic levels?

June 28, 2022 Philip Porado

At least one major Canadian insurer has seen driving patterns return to pre-pandemic levels last seen in late 2019 and early 2020. Aviva closely monitors both the amount of driving and its claims frequency, said Phil Gibson, executive vice president

Jurors sitting in a court room box
News AdjustersClaimsClaims CanadaInsuranceLegalRisk

Will rocketing consumer prices spark social inflation?

June 24, 2022 Philip Porado

While consumers are paying close attention to inflation’s impact on their wallets, insurers should be keeping an eye on social inflation – and recognize the two are often linked. “There’s quite a distinction between the impact of what I would