Saskatchewan Government Insurance (SGI) is the latest public auto insurer to announce customer rebates for drivers resulting from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Both Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) and the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) announced rebates in January and…
A Manitoba court decision ordering the province’s public auto insurer to pay a bad faith award of $350,000 serves as a cautionary tale to the industry that bad faith awards for mishandling a claim can be made even after a…
Average personal auto premium rates in Canada decreased 2.6% in 2020 Q4 compared to the same period in 2019, but some provinces did see an increase, according to the latest results from Applied Systems’ premium rate index. On average, both…
Manitoba’s brokers will provide input on designing a system for online auto insurance in the province and will be involved in every digital transaction, says the provincial broker association. A recently-signed, five-year agreement between Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) and the…
Although the impact of carbon emissions on climate is a major concern for carriers, western Canadian brokers are concerned about efforts to reduce Canada’s reliance on oil and gas. “Oil and gas is not going away any time soon, and…
Meet Clint Smith, chief operating officer of Manitoba-based Andrew Agencies Ltd., which recently acquired several brokerages in Saskatchewan. Smith gave us his take on the challenges brokers face in Western Canada, the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the inside…
The COVID-19 pandemic required one large Canadian brokerage to take a “very different approach” to mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity. COVID affected the M&A process in two significant ways, Jamie Lyons, president and chief operating officer with Westland Insurance Group…
Westland Insurance’s mergers and acquisition strategy continues in an easterly direction from its roots in British Columbia. Just days after closing its first-ever brokerage acquisition in Ontario, Westland Insurance Group Ltd. announced its second acquisition in Manitoba. On Nov. 10,…
Manitoba went into lockdown Thursday morning after the province’s COVID-19 numbers ranked among the worst in the country and its healthcare system approached capacity. But this time, unlike the first go-around in the spring, brokers say they are in an…
Vehicle damage claims frequency appeared to be 6% lower for vehicles with winter tires than those without winter tires, Manitoba’s public auto insurer concluded in a recent study. “The estimated 6.3% reduction in claim frequency due to winter tire use…
Manitoba Public Insurance has hired Eric Herbelin, a former senior strategist for Zurich Insurance, as its new CEO, effective Jan. 4. Herbelin worked in Switzerland for Zurich from 2001 through 2016, according to his LinkedIn profile. MPI announced Herbelin’s appointment…
Teenagers are 3.1 times more likely to follow too closely than drivers older than 45, Manitoba’s auto insurer is warning. Teens are also 3.6 times more likely to lose control or drive off the road than drivers aged 45 and…