Canadian Underwriter

Keyword
NatCats

Blizzard in city. Winter weather. Deep snow
News CatastrophesClaimsClimate ChangeMarkets / Coverages

What Western Canada’s deep freeze cost insurers

March 11, 2024 by David Gambrill

Canada’s property and casualty insurers rang in 2024 by paying out $180 million to repair damage caused by Western Canada’s deep freeze in mid-January. Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) released the figure Monday, which is based on industry claims totals

Flooded out house
News CatastrophesClaimsClimate ChangeInsurance

Insurers bring Cat claims in-house: How independent adjusters adapt

February 7, 2024 Jason Contant

Some major Canadian P&C insurers are bringing claims processes in-house, arguing it results in a better customer experience, cost efficiencies and consistent claims-handling. But that doesn’t mean the end is near for independent adjusters (IAs). They see a bright future

Insurance companies are reaching a tipping point on NatCats
News BrokersCatastrophesClaimsInsurance

When will Canada’s insurers reach a tipping point over NatCats?

January 17, 2024 Philip Porado

If insurers’ recent response to drastic storm and fire losses recorded in many parts of the U.S. are any harbinger, some Canadian regions may soon grapple with a future in which standard market insurers simply walk away. It’s already happening

Close up of an industrial bricklayer installing bricks to build back on a construction site
News BrokersCatastrophesClaimsInsurance

Should insurers help customers build back better…or not at all?

January 4, 2024 Philip Porado

Increased severity and frequency of NatCats has Canada’s P&C insurance ecosystem seeking ways to add resilience to the claims process. This includes build back better initiatives to encourage adding things like hurricane straps or hail-resistant shingling to roof rebuilds to

Insurance losses going down the drain
News CatastrophesClaimsInsurance

How insurers can manage losses as NatCat events ramp up

December 18, 2023 Philip Porado

Whatever’s driving increasingly devastating storms over the past decade, one thing is certain — insurers have watched NatCat losses ramp up over the past decade. “It used to be an unusual year where you’d have more than a billion dollars

Commercial real estate for lease or sale
News BrokersCatastrophesClaimsClaims CanadaClimate ChangeCommercial LinesInsuranceMarkets / CoveragesReinsurance

What’s driving challenges in commercial property?

September 19, 2023 by Jason Contant

Challenges in the Canadian commercial property insurance market continue to be a focal point throughout 2023, primarily driven by NatCat concerns and reinsurance costs, Aon said in its Fall 2023 Insurance Market Update Canada report. “The property market continues to

Aerial shot of Miami South Beach full of hotels with some long shadows reaching into the sea. Florida, USA.
News CatastrophesClaimsClimate ChangeConstructionInsurance

Climate change not the leading cause of NatCat losses: Verisk

September 15, 2023 by David Gambrill

Although climate change is frequently cited as the Number 1 reason for higher natural catastrophes (NatCat) losses, increases in property exposure and repair costs are more significant short-term factors, according to a new report by Verisk Analytics. “Climate change is

Hurricane Lee approaches Atlantic Canada. Satellite image
News CatastrophesClaimsClimate ChangeInsurance

Lee update: Where the damage is likely to happen

September 14, 2023 by David Gambrill

New Brunswick and Nova Scotia are bracing for flooding and high winds as Hurricane Lee approaches landfall in Atlantic Canada as a Category 1 storm. Currently showing wind speeds of 155 km/h, Lee is expected to become a strong tropical

Satellite image of Hurricane Lee
News CatastrophesClaimsClaims CanadaClimate ChangeInsurance

What to expect if Lee makes landfall in the Maritimes

September 12, 2023 by David Gambrill

It’s increasingly likely Hurricane Lee will make landfall in Atlantic Canada this weekend as either a strong tropical storm or a weak Category 1 hurricane. The Canadian Hurricane Centre and AccuWeather report they are increasingly confident Hurricane Lee will hit

Firefighting a forest fire with white smoke
News CatastrophesClaimsClimate ChangeEarnings / RatingsInsuranceReinsurance

Why secondary perils are of primary concern to insurers

August 25, 2023 by David Gambrill

So-called “secondary perils” are now of primary concern for insurers, and the P&C industry needs to change its language and focus accordingly, Moody’s RMS says. Secondary perils include insured damage losses caused by natural catastrophes such as wildfires, hail or

Global Weather Crisis and World Heat Storm or globe Heat increase and rising world weather temperatures or heat-wave rise as an Earth Day risk or climate change concept with 3D illustration
News CatastrophesClaimsClimate ChangeInsuranceMarkets / CoveragesReinsurance

Reinsurance in Canada unlikely to cost less in 2024

August 24, 2023 by David Gambrill

If Canadian P&C insurers thought the Cat reinsurance market was tough this year, just wait until next year. “Global reinsurers are cutting back on the cover they provide against medium-sized natural catastrophe risks due to investor pressure after several years

An insurance profession stands on the edge of a cliff, with a gap between another cliff.
News BrokersCatastrophesClimate ChangeCommercial LinesInsurance

How the protection gap affects Canada

March 15, 2023 by Alyssa DiSabatino

A growing global protection gap in NatCat and cyber will require more collaboration between public entities and private companies, lest consumers become increasingly uninsurable, the Global Federation of Insurance Associations (GFIA) said in a new report.  The report identified a