Canadian Underwriter

Topic Commercial

Young electrical engineer woman and business man standing in front of wind turbines checking and working about technical problems
News BrokersClaimsClaims ProfessionalsCommercialEmerging RisksInsurersLoss Trends

Old equipment causing new problems for insurers

June 30, 2021 by Adam Malik

Insurers are getting a front-row seat in learning the risks that come from aging renewable energy-producing equipment, says an industry expert. The last 15 years have seen a spark in growth in the area of renewable energy development, particularly in

News BrokersCommercialLegalManagementMergers and AqcuisitionsRisk ManagersTrending

Only 3 brokers have the ‘wherewithal’ to place complex large account package: Consultant

June 30, 2021 by Greg Meckbach

Some Fortune 1,000 commercial clients really have a choice of essentially three brokers – Aon, Marsh or Willis – if they are looking for a complete insurance package, a consultant for the insurance industry suggests. In a recent court filing,

News Business InterruptionCatastrophesClaimsCommercialEmerging RisksInsurersPersonal AutoPersonal HomeRisk Managers

UFO sightings: Are your clients covered for an alien invasion?

June 24, 2021 by David Gambrill

Recent talk about UFOs during the pandemic has caused the most conspiratorial among us to wonder if Canada’s property and casualty insurance industry is prepared for the most secretive of risks: An alien invasion of Earth. Film footage has emerged

Office workstation top view with businesspeople working around M&A
News BrokersCommercialLegalManagementMergers and AqcuisitionsOperationsQuebecRisk Managers

BFL president reacts to regulator’s effort to prevent Aon-Willis merger

June 23, 2021 by Greg Meckbach

In trying to block Aon plc’s proposed acquisition of Willis Towers Watson plc, the United States competition regulator is off the mark in how it describes the world’s three-biggest property and casualty commercial insurance brokerages, suggests a senior executive with

News BrokersCommercialHRQuebec

BFL Canada founder on the catalyst for setting up his own foundation

June 21, 2021 by Jason Contant

When Barry Lorenzetti set up his family foundation a few years ago, it was with his uncle Arthur in mind. Lorenzetti, president, CEO and founder of commercial brokerage BFL Canada, remembers when his uncle would visit Lorenzetti’s home when he

News ClaimsClaims Canada ArchiveClaims ProfessionalsCommercialEmerging RisksEnvironmentalInsurersLegalLiabilityOntarioRisk Managers

Why liability insurance did not cover the defence of a remediation order

June 18, 2021 by Greg Meckbach

An eastern Ontario municipality does not have coverage with any of its four former liability insurers for a dispute with the provincial environment ministry over alleged pollution occurring more than six decades ago. That’s because the insurance policies in question

Tailings pond dam breaks spilling content into river
News B.C.ClaimsCommercialEnvironmentalLiabilityProperty

Updated tailings code after Mount Polley disaster an improvement: B.C. mines auditor

June 18, 2021 by The Canadian Press

VICTORIA – A new report says changes to British Columbia’s requirements for tailings storage after the Mount Polley disaster have generally improved the management of mining waste. The mines chief auditor found many of the revisions made in 2016 to

manager pushing open virtual lock to initiate a rapid grab-and-go response.
News BrokersClaimsClaims ProfessionalsCommercialCyberInsurersLoss Trends

What’s the state of the cyber market these days?

June 17, 2021 by Adam Malik

A lack of scrutiny around the risk being taken on and a flawed claims process bit the cyber insurance market hard, especially over the last year, according to experts in the field. Now, they added, there are signs that insurers

News CommercialLegalMergers and Aqcuisitions

Why the U.S. competition regulator wants to stop the Aon-Willis merger

June 17, 2021 by Greg Meckbach

Almost all large firms in the United States buy their property and casualty insurance through either Marsh, Aon or Willis Towers Watson, the latter two of the ‘Big Three’ having market share of more than 40% in property and liability

News BrokersCommercialInsurersLiability

An expert’s guess on how long the D&O hard market will last

June 16, 2021 by Adam Malik

While things may not get any worse in the directors and officers (D&O) liability market, it’ll still be about another 18 months until things start to turn for the better, an expert in the area predicted. “I don’t see it

News AlbertaB.C.BrokersCommercialEnvironmental

How much property coverage capacity Canada’s oil sands has lost

June 15, 2021 by Greg Meckbach

The withdrawal of “hundreds of millions” of capacity for property risks related to Canada’s oil sands is creating a new challenge for brokers trying to place insurance for oil and gas clients, a broker executive reports. Some insurers have taken

pandemic remote work
News CommercialHRManagementOperationsTrending

Pandemic enabled small- and medium-sized businesses to work remotely: survey

June 15, 2021 by Salmaan Farooqui - THE CANADIAN PRESS

At Jeremy Shaki’s tech education company, his workforce of around 75 people weren’t always so keen on remote work. But as the pandemic stretches on, and Lighthouse Labs invested more into the necessary infrastructure and employee programs to make remote