News
Guy Carpenter appoints two new CEOs
April 14, 2010 by Canadian UnderwriterChris McKeown has been appointed president and CEO of North America broking operations at Guy Carpenter & Company LLC, effective May 1. McKeown will be responsible for Guy Carpenter’s treaty business in Canada and the United States. McKeown was previously…
Aon Benfield appoints Bungert, Christian as co-CEOs
April 14, 2010 by Canadian UnderwriterMichael Bungert, CEO of the Americas for Aon Benfield, and Dominic Christian, CEO of Aon Benfield’s international division, will serve as co-CEOs of Aon Benfield. Bungert is based in Chicago. He joined Aon Re Inc. as an executive vice president…
U.S. securities litigation returns to pre-financial meltdown levels
April 14, 2010 by Canadian UnderwriterAfter dominating U.S. securities litigation for three years, new securities lawsuit filings related to the global credit crisis all but disappeared in 2010 Q1, according to Advisen Ltd’s latest quarterly report on securities litigation, sponsored by ACE. “The securities litigation…
B.C. government to insure search and rescue teams
April 14, 2010 by Canadian UnderwriterBritish Columbia has agreed to cover indefinitely the cost of liability insurance for search-and-rescue groups, according to the British Columbia Search and Rescue Association (BCSRA).The government has committed $180,000 in 2010 to ensure search-and-rescue teams in the province have liability…
Government institutes penalties for failing to file and inaccuracies in GST schedule
April 13, 2010 by Canadian UnderwriterPenalties will be applied to any financial institution that fails to file, or files with inaccuracies, the GST 111 schedule, said Cliff Lee, a senior manager at KPMG.Lee spoke at the Insurance Institute of Toronto’s At the Forefront Breakfast about…
Ontario quoted auto rates soar in 2010 Q1: Kanetix
April 13, 2010 by Canadian UnderwriterAuto rates quoted in Ontario in 2010 Q1 increased by 11.6% over 2009 Q1 quoted rates, according to Kanetix’s quarterly review of auto insurance.The increase on the quoted rates “suggest that Ontario drivers are feeling the effects of rate increases…
Start-ups require extra attention from solvency regulators: PACICC report
April 13, 2010 by Canadian UnderwriterStart-up companies deserve special supervisory attention from solvency regulators, the Property and Casualty Insurance Compensation Corporation (PACICC) concluded in its assessment of the failure of Advocate General in the late 1980s.PACICC was on the hook for $45 million in claims…
PACICC calls for new funding mechanisms for worst-case insolvency scenarios
April 13, 2010 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Property and Casualty Insurance Compensation Corporation (PACICC) has approached regulators about two possible funding mechanisms in response to the potential failure of a large insurance company or several small-to medium-sized insurance companies.PACICC identified these scenarios as part of its…
Motorcycle accident victims are getting older: medical study
April 12, 2010 by Canadian UnderwriterA study by the University of Rochester Medical Centre shows the average age of the typical injured motorcyclist in the United States has increased from 34 years to 39 years between 1996 and 2005.The study reviewed the hospital records of…
Insurance and trucking industry launch joint cargo theft study
April 12, 2010 by Canadian UnderwriterMembers of the insurance industry have teamed with the Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) to launch a study examining cargo crime activity in Canada.Markel Insurance Company of Canada, Marsh Canada Limited and Zurich Canada are working alongside CTA, provincial trucking associations…
Post-recession era ripe for economic crime: PwC
April 12, 2010 by Canadian UnderwriterCost-cutting and downsizing during a recession can increase the risk of financial fraud in a post-recession landscape era, reports PricewaterhouseCoopers.A PwC Economic Crime Survey shows 56% of Canadian companies reported being victims of crime in 2009.“In a global economic downturn,…
Injury threshold in Ontario does not establish a “barrier” to jury award recovery: Ontario judge
April 12, 2010 by Canadian UnderwriterThe threshold in Ontario for determining whether injuries are “serious” enough to warrant jury awards are not supposed to be treated as barriers by insurance defence counsel, an Ontario Superior Court Justice remarked in the threshold case, Nicolas v. Bowers.“I…