What’s New: In Brief (December 09, 2009)

Consumers made 1,312 calls to the General Insurance OmbudService (GIO) with concerns regarding claims in 2010, according to statistics released in the GIO’s 2008-09 Annual Report.
The GIO received 313 calls related to policy cancellation or non-renewal, 368 about coverage and policy rating, while the rest fell into availability, affordability, administration and billing problems and an unknown category.
There were 1,603 calls from Ontario and 409 from Alberta. The rest of the provinces saw fewer than 200 calls, in addition to 11 calls from outside Canada.
In more than 900 instances, GIO was able to provide information to resolve the inquiry, while in nearly 750 complaints, the calls were referred to the company.
Of the 66 calls that turned into cases, GIO was able to resolve 24, while 12 were resolved by the company.

A.M. Best upgraded the financial strength rating (FSR) of The Guarantee Company of North America USA to A (Excellent) from A- (Excellent).
A.M. Best also affirmed the FSR of A (Excellent) of its parent company, The Guarantee Company of North America (GCNA) (Toronto, ON).
The outlook for all ratings is stable.
“The upgrading of GCNA USA’s ratings reflects its excellent capitalization, improved operating performance, strong investment income and favorable leverage position,” A.M. Best reported in a release. “The ratings also acknowledge the implicit and explicit support GCNA USA receives from GCNA.”
GCNA has made significant capital infusions to support the re-organization of GCNA USA and strengthen its capitalization since GCNA purchased the subsidiary in 2003, A.M. Best says.
“These capital injections have greatly benefited the overall risk-adjusted capitalization of GCNA USA, improved underwriting leverage measures and strengthened liquidity.”