Canadian businesses less concerned about insurance costs than in mid-2010

If there is one sign of a softening commercial insurance market in Canada, it might be that Canadian businesses across the country don’t seem to be as concerned about insurance costs as they were in mid-2010.
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business released on Feb. 4 the results of its Business Barometer Index, which measures business optimism, based on a survey of 967 businesses across Canada in January 2011.
The provincial surveys each cite a list of 10 “major costs concerns” of provincial businesses, including tax-regulatory costs, insurance costs, fuel and energy costs, bank account and process fees, wage and other costs. Unlike the survey data released in July 2010, insurance did not top the list in any of the provinces.
Newfoundland businesses cited insurance costs as their Number 1 concern in the previous study, with 65% of respondents listing it as their chief concern. But in the February 2011 study, that slipped down to 63% and ranked only third among Newfoundland businesses’ chief concerns.
Elsewhere in the country, insurance costs dropped as a concern in all provinces but Saskatchewan (where it markedly increased from 44% to 54%) and New Brunswick (from 44% to 47%)
In Ontario, 57% of business cited insurance costs as a major concern (down from 60% in the July 2010 study). And in Quebec, 36% of business cited insurance costs as a major concern, down from 38% half a year ago.