The Government of Canada is proposing to crack down on auto theft, by creating a separate offence of “theft of a motor vehicle” that would carry a mandatory prison sentence of six months for three or more convictions.The proposed new…
The Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) has rejected the contention of the Canadian Bar Association (CBA) that New Brunswick’s cap on minor auto injuries should be removed.In particular, IBC has challenged any assertion that bodily injury claims costs were not…
Amid an unprecedented economic crisis in the United States, insurance premiums for businesses continued to slide towards a “soft landing” rather than spike upwards in the form of rate increases, according to the 2009 First Quarter RIMS benchmark Survey.“While banks…
The Generation Group, an integrated communication and technology company headquartered in Montreal, has just acquired the exclusive distribution rights in North America and China for a Customer Experience Management (CEM) solution created by Boxalino, a Swiss company, using technologies driven…
The American Institute for CPCU/Insurance Institute of America has joined with the Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS) to develop a new course entitled Enterprise-wide Risk Management (ERM): Developing and Implementing.The course is to be offered through the Center for…
American International Group Inc. (AIG) has agreed to sell its 21st Century Insurance Group, comprising AIG’s U.S. personal auto insurance business, to Farmers Group, Inc. (FGI), a subsidiary of the Zurich Financial Services Group (Zurich).Under the terms of the transaction,…
Insurance Brokers Association of Ontario (IBAO) has partnered with the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP) for its 2009 Crime Prevention Program.The 2009 program will see 25,000 educational booklets handed out across the province by police officers in an…
Moody’s Investors Service has revised its outlook for the U.S. commercial lines insurance sector to negative from stable.The downgrade is based on a “confluence of factors,” including intensified stress on insurers’ investment portfolios and financial inflexibility arising from capital market…
Auto rate applications approved by the Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO) for 2009 Q1 averaged +0.95% based on the entire market. In 2009 Q1, the average rate change was +3.09% for the 30.91% of the market that had approved…
Auto accident claims for housekeeping and home maintenance expenses in Ontario are not subject to the province’s legislative threshold that restricts payments only to those claimants who suffer from “serious and permanent” impairments, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice has…
A catastrophically injured victim of a drive-by shooting is not entitled to coverage under the OPCF 44R–Family Protection Coverage Endorsement, the Ontario Court of Appeal has ruled.Louise Russo walked into a Toronto-area sandwich shop in 2004, when a van with…
Many insurers manage risk using stale, outdated reports and information, a study by the London-based Economist Intelligence Unit found.In 2008 Q4 and 2009 Q1, the EIU surveyed 446 senior executives from 10 industries around the world about their views on…