News
Aviva announces 12 winners of third annual Aviva Community Fund
January 25, 2012 by Canadian UnderwriterAviva Canada Inc. has announced 12 winners of the third Aviva Community Fund, which awards a total of $1 million to community-based initiatives across the country.This year’s winners include schoolyard projects in Ontario and Alberta, an animal rescue facility in…
Faulty extension cords and bad blockheater plugs spark vehicular fires: MPI
January 25, 2012 by Canadian UnderwriterFaulty extension cord or corroded block heater plugs are the culprit for several dozen vehicle fires each winter in Manitoba, according to Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) fire experts. A cracked extension cord or a block heater with a corroded plug…
IBC meets with City of Ottawa to discuss rates after city’s infrastructure improvements in flood-prone area
January 25, 2012 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) met with city staff and an Ottawa councilor to discuss the potential impact of the City of Ottawa’s efforts to reduce the risk of flooding in its west end of Kanata, yourottawaregion.com reports.Ottawa dedicated…
Deadly B.C. sawmill explosion causes estimated loss of between $25 million and $100 million
January 24, 2012 by Canadian UnderwriterThe majority owner of a Babine Forest Products sawmill that exploded and burned down in Burns Lake, B.C. last weekend, killing two, confirmed it is insured for the mill.Hampton Affiliates, based in Portland, Oregon, owns 90% of the sawmill, which…
U.S. commercial P&C rates up by 2.8% in 2011 Q4
January 24, 2012 by Canadian UnderwriterCommercial property and casualty pricing in the United States increased by an average 2.8% in 2011 Q4, according to The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers’ quarterly Commercial P/C Market Index Survey. On average, small, medium and large account pricing…
XL Group unveils multi-channel customer claims portal
January 24, 2012 by Canadian UnderwriterXL Group plc (NYSE:XL) has unveiled a new multi-channel customer portal, created with the help of Accenture (NYSE: ACN), based upon XL’s global claims system, XL GlobalClaim. The XL GlobalClaim Customer Portal provides customers with access to claims information via…
Fracking a lesser-known, but significant environmental insurance risk: WillisWire
January 24, 2012 by Canadian UnderwriterFracking, a hydraulic process used to extract gas from shale formations, is one of several, lesser-known energy risks facing the environmental insurance industry in 2012, according to bloggers writing for WillisWire.“There is much debate and concern surrounding fracking due to…
70% chance that a Magnitude 7 or greater quake could hit Tokyo region in the next four years: research
January 24, 2012 by Canadian UnderwriterNew research by the University of Tokyo’s Earthquake Research Institute suggests a 70% chance that a Magnitude-7 or greater earthquake could hit the Tokyo region sometime over the next four years.This new research, widely reported in the media, considerably steps…
Women pay less than men for auto and home insurance: study
January 23, 2012 by Canadian UnderwriterWomen in Canada pay less for auto and home insurance than men, according to a study by InsureEye Inc.“We have analyzed insurance premiums of Canadians across the four most populated provinces,” an InsureEye Inc. release states. “The outcome was quite…
Re/insurers should consider cycles of earthquake clustering when underwriting quake risk: research
January 23, 2012 by Canadian UnderwriterThe occurrence of “giant” earthquakes is cyclical, not random, and therefore should cause reinsurers and insurers to reconsider their strategies for underwriting and pricing this risk, an EQECAT report suggests. Kate Stillwell authored EQECAT Inc.’s recent report Global Clustering of…
Brokers should consider and educate clients about cyber liability insurance
January 23, 2012 by Canadian UnderwriterBrokers can use the insights they gain from researching and insuring their own cyber risks to explain cyber liability coverage to their customers, says Melissa Snyder, president of the Insurance Brokers Association of Waterloo Region (IBAWR).Snyder discussed cyber liability risk…
Costa Concordia losses could top $1 billion: A.M. Best
January 23, 2012 by Canadian UnderwriterInsured losses related to the Costa Concordia wreck could run as high as US$1 billion – a record for losses related to cruise ship disasters, AM Best reported in its European edition of BestWeek. The P&I clubs will be exposed…