Insurers should be allowed to terminate auto policies electronically if consumers consent, the Insurance Brokers Association of Ontario’s CEO says. In its budget document released Nov. 5, the Ontario government said the next phase of its previously-announced “blueprint” for auto…
The COVID-19 pandemic required one large Canadian brokerage to take a “very different approach” to mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity. COVID affected the M&A process in two significant ways, Jamie Lyons, president and chief operating officer with Westland Insurance Group…
Ontario’s broker association is keeping a close eye on a provincial government proposal to relax restrictions on credit unions selling insurance in branches. “We believe there is a public consultation that is going to take place in 2021, so we…
Westland Insurance’s mergers and acquisition strategy continues in an easterly direction from its roots in British Columbia. Just days after closing its first-ever brokerage acquisition in Ontario, Westland Insurance Group Ltd. announced its second acquisition in Manitoba. On Nov. 10,…
It is still up to regulators to decide whether Aon plc will be allowed to acquire Willis Towers Watson plc, but Aon officials seem confident there won’t be a problem. During a recent earnings call, Aon executives were asked why…
A B.C. broker has been suspended for two years and fined $1,000 for passing off a client’s cancelled vehicle license plates as his own, giving the appearance that his vehicle was insured when in fact it wasn’t. Ping Hong (Gary)…
Intact Financial Corp. is aiming to grow its brokerage subsidiary to a $3-billion-a-year operation, CEO Charles Brindamour told investment banking analysts recently. “BrokerLink recently surpassed $2 billion in premiums as it continues to grow organically and through acquisitions,” Brindamour said…
British Columbia-based Westland Insurance Group Ltd. has moved into the Ontario market, announcing that it has acquired Gillons Insurance Brokers Ltd. The “significant and substantial milestone” supports Westland’s expansion strategy to become a national insurance brokerage, the brokerage said when…
Clients in the hospitality sector who cannot find affordable coverage can now go directly to the Insurance Bureau of Canada for help. IBC has hired a risk manager to help commercial clients improve their risk profile, said Jordan Brennan, IBC’s…
Canada’s largest insurer announced late Tuesday that its brands Intact Insurance and belairdirect will no longer offer optional auto coverage in British Columbia. “This decision was taken after careful consideration, given the upcoming regulatory changes in the province that will…
With a week to go before Hallowe’en, Ontario brokers heard some spooky stories last week about what happens if a brokerage does not invest in keeping up to date with technology. “Technology is going to be a much more permanent…
Brokers are more satisfied with their jobs now than they have been over the past three years, Canadian Underwriter’s 2020 National Broker Survey reveals. What’s more, they like their bosses better than their bosses think they do (at least, this…