News

CNA Canada has appointed Gary Owcar president and chief operating officer. Owcar will be responsible for executing profitable growth strategies in the global insurer’s Canadian operations.He entered the insurance industry straight from university and began his career in the claims…

Ontario’s broker regulator has revoked the license of Brampton insurance broker Mustapha Kassab, who had been representing himself for close to six years under the assumed name of his son, “Hadi.”The Registered Insurance Brokers of Ontario (RIBO) made its decision…

A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength rating (FSR) of ‘A’ (Excellent) of Swiss Reinsurance Company Ltd (Swiss Re) (Switzerland) and its subsidiaries. “The ratings reflect Swiss Re’s strong risk-adjusted capitalization, very strong core operating results and resilient business…

Provincially regulated property and casualty insurers in Alberta wrote Cdn$8.04 billion in premium in 2008, marking an increase from 2007’s Cdn$7.5 billion, according to the Superintendent of Insurance’s Annual Report.The direct claims ratio in 2008 rose to 61.3% from 56.9%…

Insurance companies beset by fraudulent claims are under-reporting the fraud to police, according to a Statistics Canada report, Survey of Fraud Against Businesses. The StatsCan report is based on a survey covering about 7,500 business establishments and head offices from…

The current hard market for financial institutions (FI) insurance is unlikely to last until the end of 2010, according to the latest Willis FI Index from Willis Group Holdings (NYSE: WSH), a global insurance broker.Willis’ 2009 Q4 FI market update,…

The Alberta Insurance Council will award two annual scholarships in insurance education at Grant MacEwan University and the University of Calgary.Both schools offer programs to students planning a career in insurance and will determine the award recipients.Both students will receive…

The Canadian Bar Association says proposed new amendments to the Criminal Code, which call for mandatory minimum sentencing for fraud, are unnecessary and already covered in existing legislation.Bill C-52 received its second reading in the House of Commons on Oct.…

The Ontario government has passed legislation to create a harmonized sales tax of 13%.The HST will be implemented on July 1, 2010.The implementation of the tax will result in a one-time hit of $250 million for the insurance industry at…

Over the past year, for the lines of coverage reviewed, the construction industry has averaged single-digit rate decreases, Aon reported in its 2009 Construction Industry Report.Overall, the construction companies surveyed by Aon appeared to have maintained their retentions. For umbrella/excess…

A severe winter storm in central Ontario has prompted CAA to warn motorists to stay off of the roads in that area.Eighty centimetres of snow is expected to fall throughout Dec. 11 in the Huntsville and Bracebridge areas, Environment Canada…

A new application by Summit Mobile Services provides the user with access to services required if ever involved in an accident. ‘Help I Crashed My Car’ provides the user with a one-click automated emergency communication system that contacts up to…