Canadian Underwriter
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On the Scene (February 01, 2009)


January 31, 2009   by


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Tim Ponton has been appointed regional vice president (Western) and brings with him a wealth of experience and passion to his new role with Winmar Franchise Corp.

Ponton’s management, administration and adjuster experience over the past 28 years with Major Independent claims management organizations will help increase our ability to service our clients with the understanding of expectation to provide quality customer service.

Trevor Black has been promoted to branch manager in St. Catharines for Cunningham Lindsey Canada Claims Services Ltd (CLC).

“Trevor has a number of exciting plans for our St. Catharines office, namely quality measurement, training and education,” Lorri Frederick, CLC’s senior vice president of the central region, said in a release. “He’s a highly motivated person and works hard for both CLC and our customers.”

Crawford & Company (Canada) Inc. donated $50,000 to Women in Insurance Cancer Crusade (WICC) on behalf of its employees.

The latest donation, provided during a celebration breakfast at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel on Feb. 10, brings Crawford’s five-year total to $250,000.

“Five years ago, when we first launched our charitable initiative, Crawford Cares, and began our journey with WICC, we never dreamed that we would reach a quarter of a million dollars so quickly,” John Sharoun, CEO of Crawford & Company (Canada) Inc., said. “We had hoped to raise five or ten thousand dollars a year. Instead, our employees jumped in wholeheartedly and we have consistently come together to raise both community awareness and $50,000 annually through various fundraisers, payroll deductions and donations. I couldn’t be more proud of our staff and all of the efforts they consistently make for their communities and this wonderful cause.”

Joe Restoule was inaugurated as the president of the Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS) on Jan. 8 at a reception at the Harvard Club in New York City.

Restoule discarded his hidden, prepared notes and gave a heartfelt thanks to fellow RIMS board members, especially immediate past-president Janice Ochenkowski.

“She has been a mentor, a coach and a wonderful friend over the past year,” he said. “She rallied the team around her, showed unwavering dedication to the elevation of the society and has been a true leader.”

Restoule noted Ochenkowski’s achievements over her term, including the development of a risk management maturity model, several professional development initiatives, the launch of a virtual conference and her work to reach out to and work with international risk management associations. Commenting on the coming year, Restoule noted the economic turmoil and the challenges it will create, but remained optimistic.

“We as risk managers are a community that is not afraid of change and innovation,” he said. “I have utmost faith that 2009 will end with a resounding economic recovery.”

Vale Training Solutions is now offering a Green Building Estimating course to meet the growing demand for certified “green” claims adjusters.

The two-and-half day Certified Green Building Estimating course focuses on certification requirements for sustainable material, determination of certification protocols for new and retrofitted buildings, construction, estimation of “green” building construction and products, Energy Star and Zero Energy buildings, calculation of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) criteria and standards, and insurance policy conditions for coverage consistent with new or retrofitted construction.

Enrollment information for the Certified Green Building Estimating course is available on the Vale Training Solutions website (www.valenational.com)with the first offering scheduled for this month.

HKMB HUB International Insurance Brokers is hosting the 4th annual Hockey Challenge for Charity On March 11.

The event will be held at the Air Canada Centre from 3 p. m. to 6 p. m.

The annual Claims vs. Underwriting game, will feature players from sponsoring firms.

The winning team will be awarded the Challenge Cup.

All are welcome with proceeds going to United Way and Women in Insurance Cancer Crusade.

For more information, contact Mike Moyer at HKMB HUB International at 416-597-4625. Members of the CIAA attended a Special Olympics dinner and auction on Jan. 28 at the Cunard Centre, Pier 23 in Halifax, where the Blue Goose purchased a table.

The Blue Goose sponsored a table at the event. Over $80,000 was raised for the Special Olympics.

The KRG Children’s Charitable Foundation has donated more than $1.3 million to The Hospital for Sick Children.

“KRG is in the insurance business and The Hospital for Sick Children represents a giant insurance policy for children and their families,” says Steven Wise, chairman and CEO of KRG Insurance Group and chairman of KRG Children’s Charitable Foundation.

The donation will be divided between the start-up of an in-house Autism Network, Operation Art (a ceramic painting workshop at Sick Kids Hospital) and various other projects.

The Women in Insurance Cancer Crusade (WICC) is holding its 13th annual WICC Gala dinner on Apr. 8, 2009.

The event will be held at The Westin Harbour Castle Conference Centre — Metropolitan Grand Ballroom. Prereserved rooms are available for $189/night.

To register for the event, log on to www.wicc.caor contact execdirector.wicc@sympatico.ca.

Drink tickets can be purchased online, as well.

To date, WICC Ontario has raised more than $3,000,000 in support of cancer research.

David K. Marshall, manager of Crawford’s Sault Ste. Marie branch, is the inaugural winner of the Gerry Anderson Memorial Award.

This award was established in memory of Gerry Anderson, a longtime Crawford and industry claims leader who passed away in 2007. Every year, this honour will be given to active Crawford claims professionals with more than five years of branch service who consistently exceed quality expectations in investigation, evaluation, reporting, and customer service. In addition, they must demonstrate leadership, professionalism, and teamwork as a representative of both Crawford and the industry.

Marshall has consistently demonstrated all of these characteristics over his 16 years with Crawford. His technical expertise and dedication to customer service is well known to peers and customers, as is his work ethic and willingness to cover a wide geographic region. For the last two years, Marshall has received the most complimentary client notes of any Crawford employee in Canada.

He is also heavily involved in his community, dedicating his time as the director of CIAA Northern Region, and past president and current assistant secretary of the Sault Ste. Marie Rotary Club.

Sylvie Tremblay, Silvana Facciolo, Steven DelGreco and Anthony Tuson have joined Crawford & Company (Canada) Inc.

Tremblay has been named director of operations. She has more than 30 years of experience in the insurance industry and will be concentrating primarily on several special projects with Crawford’s regional claims centres in Mississauga and Montreal.

Facciolo, who has 25 years of experience, has joined Crawford as director of business development in the firm’s sales and marketing division. She will oversee several account management projects in addition to sales and marketing initiatives.

DelGreco has been appointed manager of Crawford’s Toronto West branch. With more than 22 years of experience, Del-Greco will manage a group of multi-line adjusters and support staff in one o
f Crawford’s largest branches.

Tuson, national account executive, has moved to Crawford’s Toronto location from Vancouver.

He will continue to be responsible for commercial property and casualty accounts across Canada, in addition to enhancing Crawford’s initiatives with several of its key accounts.

Having successfully completed the extremely challenging Chartered Loss Adjuster (CLA) examination program, two worthy members were honoured at the CIAA Mid-year Meeting, Feb. 2. The CLA designation recognizes competency, knowledge, skills, and experience distinct from the already demanding requirements in attaining a full independent adjusters’ license. It is a certification distinguishing the best and most qualified independent loss adjusters in Canada.

Teresa Mitchell, FCIP, CRM, CLA, with Crawford & Company (Canada) Inc., has been a member of CIAA since she began her adjusting career in 1985. Mitchell, the first woman to attain the designation since the development of the examinations, has been actively involved in several industry associations, including past-president OIAA Georgian Bay, past-chair IIO Ontario Georgian Bay, and is currently CIAA Ontario Region’s 2nd vice-president.

Stephen Scullion, B. Sc., FCIP, CRM, Dip. Ad. Ed., CLA, also began his insurance career in 1985 becoming an independent adjuster and member of CIAA with Crawford & Company (Canada) Inc. in 1989. He has been an Insurance Institute course instructor since 1990 and is a cited contributor to the three claims stream core courses that are now mandatory for the CIP designation.

Sincere congratulations to Teri and Steve on a most significant accomplishment!

ServiceMaster Clean Disaster Restoration locations across the country initiated a fundraiser to support the Canadian Red Cross.

“When investigating a charity to partner with us, it was important to us to work with an organization that represents our corporate objectives, provided a core synergy to our industry and worked directly with the local communities” Stephan Roy, business leader for Disaster Restoration with ServiceMaster of Canada, said. “It was evident early on our business owners embraced the Canadian Red Cross as our charity of choice.”

Local franchises and ServiceMaster of Canada have committed to providing annual contributions to a fund. During Fire Prevention Week all participating locations are providing a monetary contribution to the fund with every new claim assignment they receive.

“We are grateful to Service Master for their generous contribution of $15,000 and this will be a direct benefit to people affected by local disasters” Tim Hoswitschka, director of national corporate relations at the Canadian Red Cross, said.

Crawford & Company (Canada) Inc. has made organizational changes within its senior management that are intended to enhance the company’s strategic growth initiative and customer focus.

Pat Van Bakel has been promoted to senior vice president of claims operations. He will focus on uniting all of Crawford’s National Claims Services’ branches under one umbrella. In addition, he will work with regional teams to enhance both service and work product.

Gary Gardner has been promoted to the position of senior vice president of sales and marketing. He will assume a global sales position, working with other sales teams to leverage cross-border and overseas opportunities. In addition, he will focus on key account management strategy and continue to enhance sales and marketing initiatives.

Jaqueline Roy has been named vice president of administration. She will assume responsibility for Crawford’s internal service lines, such as Human Resources, Training, Project Management, and Compliance, Quality and Best Practices.

Law firm Hughes Amys held a pre-holiday season party at Six Steps Restaurant and Lounge in Toronto on Nov. 19. Staff and insurance industry clients and friends braved an evening snowfall to spend quality time together as a warm-up to the coming festive season.

Heather Matthews has been promoted to the position of vice president of Healthcare Management Services. She will continue to develop Healthcare’s strategies and business portfolio.

Sheri Martinello, assistant vice president of Risk Management Services (RMS), will now lead Crawford’s Risk Management Services division across Canada, in addition to being the prime contact in Canada for the Global Markets division.

Jennifer Virley has been promoted to the position of assistant vice president of project management. She will lead a reorganization and restructuring of the project management office to align it with global project management and strategy teams.

Ken Lloyd will assume additional duties as assistant vice president of compliance, quality and best practices.

Mike Tolan has accepted additional responsibilities as director of quality and professional standards. He will be responsible for audits, professional standards reviews (PSR) and quality. •


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