A spring storm across Quebec and Ontario on Thursday knocked out power to tens of thousands of customers, closed schools and blanketed the Montreal area with heavy, wet snow. In Quebec, more than 220,000 homes and businesses had no electricity…
The trend of insurers owning restoration firms and third-party vendors may not continue, particularly since controlling costs remains a priority for carriers, sources tell Canadian Underwriter. It also looks like a national adjusting licensing standard or cross-provincial licensing will not…
A firefighter suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after witnessing the aftermath of a rental van attack killing 10 people in Toronto in April 2018 is not entitled to accident benefits, because he was not involved in an “accident,” an…
Commercial truck fleets trying to get more favourable insurance rates by only reporting the trucks on the road, and not the ones on their lots, might find themselves outwitted by the industry’s scrutiny, sources tell Canadian Underwriter. But whether due…
Introduction of lithium-ion batteries has introduced new hazards into the everyday lives of Canadians due to their ability to catch fire spontaneously – a phenomenon known as ‘thermal runaway.’ What began as concerns about fires started by cell phone and…
Mounties in Alberta say they’re keeping traffic moving on the Trans-Canada Highway despite a roadside carbon-levy protest, and say five large farm tractors have already caused a multi-vehicle crash. Protesters slowed traffic on the Trans-Canada just west of Calgary on…
Canadian property and casualty insurance brokerages are gravitating towards personalized communication automation (PCA), an executive at brokerage automation company Pathway tells Canadian Underwriter. Nine years ago, only about 3% of insurance brokerages had adopted PCA into their operations, says Alek…
In Canada, corporate insolvencies have noticeably increased year over year, but brokers can step in to assist their clients with cash flow management and risk mitigation solutions, one expert shares. Insolvencies, defined as a business’s inability to abide by their…
Canada is not immune to social divisions resulting in damage caused by political protests, and insurance companies can do three things to prepare for political risk, says a new report published by the Insurance Institute of Canada. First, insurance companies…
A trial opens Tuesday in a class-action lawsuit accusing the Quebec government of wiping out hundreds of millions of dollars in the value of taxi permits by allowing ride-hailing company Uber to operate and then by abolishing the permit system.…
If your brokerage is looking to solve its labour retention problems, consider this: The more diverse a P&C brokerage’s leadership team is, the less likely staff are to consider leaving their jobs. So finds a Canadian Underwriter survey, asking P&C…
Desjardins’ acquisition of The Insurance Company of Prince Edward Island (ICPEI) will enable the direct writer to diversify its distribution model and expand its national reach, Desjardins General Insurance Group president and chief operating officer Valerie Lavoie tells Canadian Underwriter. …