Topic
Insurance
Personal injury/B.I. claims frequencies down slightly, but severity highest in a year
January 26, 2009 by Canadian UnderwriterCanadian 2008 Q3 casualty statistics show a slight decrease in Personal Injury Protection (PIP) claims — i.e. no-fault claims for medical expenses and payments for wage losses — and yet the severity of such claims was the highest recorded in…
KRG Insurance Brokers Inc. merges with Roger R. James Insurance Brokers Ltd. (January 26, 2009)
January 26, 2009 by Canadian UnderwriterRoger R. James Insurance Brokers Ltd. and KRG Insurance Brokers Inc. have merged to become one of Canada’s largest independent brokers.The financial terms of the merger were not disclosed. Established in 1976, RRJ Insurance Group is a multi-line office with…
KRG Insurance Brokers Inc. merges with Roger R. James Insurance Brokers Ltd. (January 26, 2009)
January 26, 2009 by Canadian UnderwriterRoger R. James Insurance Brokers Ltd. and KRG Insurance Brokers Inc. have merged to become one of Canada’s largest independent brokers.The financial terms of the merger were not disclosed. Established in 1976, RRJ Insurance Group is a multi-line office with…
Financial crisis result of failure to embrace ERM
January 26, 2009 by Canadian UnderwriterThe financial crisis that began in 2008 resulted from a system-wide failure to embrace appropriate enterprise risk management (ERM) behaviours, said Joseph Restoule, Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS) president.Restoule introduced a RIMS report, The 2008 Financial Crisis; a Wake-up…
Debate on the impact of Sea Surface Temperature on hurricanes will continue in 2009
January 23, 2009 by Canadian UnderwriterA running debate about whether warmer sea surface temperatures (SST) in the Atlantic Ocean correlate with greater hurricane frequency and intensity will most likely continue into 2009, Aon-Benfield’s Annual Global Climate and Catastrophe Report: 2008 says.As it stands, “as climatologists…
GNAIE endorses fair value accounting recommendations
January 23, 2009 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Group of North American Insurance Enterprises (GNAIE), an organization of major life and property/casualty insurers and reinsurers, has endorsed the Group of Thirty’s recommendations on fair value accounting.The Group of Thirty, established in 1978, is a private, non-profit, international…
Insurance-linked securities survive “acid test” of credit crisis
January 23, 2009 by Canadian UnderwriterThe significance of insurance-linked securities will likely increase over time, despite the global credit crisis, suggests The Geneva Association in its most recent Insurance Economics report.Now that AIG has become a systemic risk in its role as a major financial…
Manitoba court dismisses claim for delay
January 23, 2009 by Canadian UnderwriterNearly fifteen years after a fire damaged an insured’s home, the Court of Queen’s Bench of Manitoba has dismissed the claim for delay.In Martin et al v. The Portage La Prairie Mutual Insurance Company, Wayne and Diane Martin owned a…
US commercial market premiums show signs of levelling off in Q4
January 22, 2009 by Canadian UnderwriterUS commercial property and casualty market premiums showed definite signs of levelling off in 2008 Q4 across small, medium and large accounts and for most major lines of commercial business, according to The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers (CIAB)’s…
A.M. Best downgrades Kingsway Financial
January 22, 2009 by Canadian UnderwriterA.M. Best Co. has downgraded the issuer credit ratings (ICR) of Kingsway Financial Services Inc. (to “b” from “bb-”) and Kingsway General Insurance Company (to “bb” from “bbb-”).The financial strength rating of Kingsway General Insurance Company was also downgraded from…
What’s New: In Brief (January 22, 2009)
January 22, 2009 by Canadian UnderwriterThe KRG Children’s Charitable Foundation donated Cdn$2 million to Canadian charities in 2008.The donation includes a Cdn$1.3-million contribution to the Hospital for Sick Children.“KRG is in the insurance business and The Hospital for Sick Children represents a giant insurance policy…
Aviva Canada terminates partnership with PC Financial
January 22, 2009 by Canadian Underwriter**CORRECTION** The following item is an amended version of a prevous item in which Sally Turney was incorrectly quoted as saying the partnership no longer met the companies’ financial needs. In fact, the partnership no longer meets the companies’ strategic…