2000 fin-year a dismal experience
April 1, 2001 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Canadian property and casualty insurance industry disclosed a $130 million taxed loss for the final quarter of last year, the first quarterly loss in almost 18 years, observes Paul Kovacs, chief economist of the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC).…
Kingsway maintains profit surge
April 1, 2001 by Canadian UnderwriterNon-standard auto insurer Kingsway Financial Services Inc. (TSE: KFS) more than doubled net income for the 2000 financial year to $27.5 million (1999: $13.6 million). This translated to earnings of 81 a share (1999: 38), with the company posting a…
Pafco team back in business with Co-operators
April 1, 2001 by Canadian UnderwriterCo-operators General Insurance Co. has sold around half of its stakeholding in wholly-owned specialty auto risk insurer Echelon General Insurance Co. to a group of former senior executives of Pafco Insurance Co. who left the company after it was taken…
Defining the Cost of Risk
April 1, 2001 Vikki SpencerThe cost of risk in Canada rose in 1999, according to a survey from the Risk and Insurance Management Society. At the same time, administration costs for risk management departments fell, giving rise to the observation that risk managers are having to do more with less. And, with the hardening of the insurance market, already evident in the 1999 results, there promises to more pressure than ever on risk mangers to stretch their resources and find creative ways to finance risk.
News (March 01, 2001)
March 1, 2001 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Insurance Bureau of Canada stepped up its fight against auto theft last month, sponsoring a one-hour documentary, “Stolen to Order”, which aired on Global TV. Hosted by Peter Kent (pictured), the documentary features an interview with an “auto theft…
E-INSURANCE: BREAKING DOWN REGULATORY BARRIERS
March 1, 2001 Sean van Zyl, EditorWith the recent approval of federal and provincial laws paving the way for the development of e-commerce, property and casualty insurance regulators in Canada face the tough decision of whether or not online buyers need the extent of “hand holding”…
A NEW ORDER VALUE OR LOST OPPORTUNITY?
March 1, 2001 Sean van Zyl, EditorComing years will see increased attention being brought to bear on the service performance of the claims management side of the insurance business, delegates who attended the recently held Canadian Insurance Claims Managers Association and Canadian Independent Adjusters Association joint…
Cross-Canada broker survey BRIDGING THE GAP
March 1, 2001 Vikki SpencerA time of sweeping change. This is no understatement of the current regulatory, market and distribution conditions in the insurance industry. For the country’s brokers, this time of change means refocusing lobby efforts, translating the hardening of rates to their…
Queensway takes survival action
March 1, 2001 by Canadian UnderwriterSpecialty risk underwriter Queensway Financial Holdings Ltd. (TSE: QFH) has secured liquidation windup orders for its troubled U.S. subsidiaries Queensway Casualty Insurance Co. (QCIC) and International Indemnity Co. (IIC). Queensway recently disclosed a major financial loss primarily as a result…
Broker networks raise earnings
February 1, 2001 by Canadian UnderwriterThree of the public-traded broker consolidator networks, Equisure Financial Network (TSE:EFN), Hi-Alta Capital Inc. (TSE:HIA), and Vector Intermediaries Inc. (VSE:VTE), have reported stronger earnings and revenue growth for the third quarter of 2000. Equisure, which also announced the successful closure…
Underwriting losses plague U.S. insurers
February 1, 2001 by Canadian UnderwriterU.S. property and casualty insurers saw their net income for the first nine months of last year fall by 5% to US$16.5 billion compared with US$17.4 billion reported for the same period in 1999, according to the Insurance Services Office…
Canadian final numbers support hardening
February 1, 2001 by Canadian UnderwriterThe final results released by StatsCan on the performance of the Canadian property and casualty insurance industry through to the end of the second quarter of last year removes any doubt that the market has entered into a broad price…