News

The Hartford has issued a public statement to calm investors after Fitch Ratings revised its outlook on The Harford Financial Services Group’s life insurance and property and casualty operations from ‘stable’ to ‘negative.’Although Fitch revised its outlook, it maintained its…

The amount of form customization rarely matches the amount called for by an insurer’s business strategy, leading to an increase in analytical challenges on pricing and underwriting, marketing difficulty and an increase in costs, a Celent report warns.In its new…

Swiss Re expects growth in direct premiums written (DPW) in Canada’s overall property and casualty industry will be less than 3% in 2008, down from 2007’s growth of 4.3%“Direct premiums written growth slowed to 1.8% [year-over-year] in [2008 Q1] from…

Bermuda insurers and (re)insurers could be bearing the brunt nearly half of the costs associated with recent storms, including Hurricane Ike, according to preliminary estimates, A.M. Best reports. “According to the Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers, Bermuda insurers provide…

AXIS Reinsurance Company, a subsidiary of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, has been authorized to operate as a branch insurer underwriting property and casualty insurance and reinsurance business in Canada.“We are looking forward to bringing our specialized capabilities in both insurance…

Average base salaries of American chief risk officers (CROs) outpace those of their Canadian counterparts by roughly $30,000, reports the Risk and Insurance Management Society’s Risk Management Compensation Survey.The 2008 survey presents compensation data for 11 different positions; for the…

Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited (TSX and NYSE: FFH) has entered into an agreement to purchase roughly 9.5 million common shares of Ridley Inc. (TSX: RCL) from its Australian parent, Ridley Corporation Limited, for Cdn$81 million. The transaction, expected to close…

Independent brokers and Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) have entered into an accord for a new compensation model that will support a more convenient renewal process and new product offerings for customers in the future.The plan includes the following features: The…

Transatlantic Holdings Inc. (NYSE: TRH) has established a special committee to evaluate proposals received from American International Group Inc. (“AIG”) related to the possible sale of AIG’s 59% common stock interest in the company.Commenting on these actions, Robert F. Orlich,…

Hurricane Kyle made landfall at Yarmouth, Nova Scotia on the evening of Sept. 28 as a Category 1 storm, but was quickly downgraded to a post-tropical low and failed to cause any serious damage, reports the Canadian Hurricane Centre (CHC).The…

The Shumka Group has unveiled new corporate identities for itself and its three operating companies, SCM Adjusters Canada Ltd., Forensic Investigations Canada (FIC) and Risk Management Services (RMS).The parent company, previously known as The Shumka Group, will now be known…

Eleven vehicles have won the Top Safety Pick Award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), with four of them in the small vehicle class.Winners are selected based on their superior overall crash protection among the vehicles in their…