Legal Rates: Judgement Awaits
December 1, 2000 Sean van Zyl, EditorA controversy which has been simmering for several years now could boil over at any moment with the consequence being higher and more frequent court damage awards being made against insurers, predict senior partners of litigation defense firms. The issue…
Magtec meets VICC standards
December 1, 2000 by Canadian UnderwriterIn its drive to promote the use of electronic vehicle immobilizers as an alternative to car alarms and other devices, the Vehicle Information Centre of Canada has approved the use of the Magtec 6000. The device, distributed by Calgary-based Magtec…
Reinsurance Strategies
December 1, 2000 Vikki SpencerInadequate rates, worldwide catastrophic losses and consolidation in the primary market created dismal results for reinsurers in the past few years. But could there be a light on the horizon? CU’s survey of Canadian reinsurance CEOs suggests change is in the wind, with rates set to rise this year and companies charting a course for profitability in the future.
Underwriting trends: Canada goes north, U.S. south.
November 1, 2000 Joel Baker, general manager of A.M. Best Co., CanadaAlthough the optimistic whisper of higher premium pricing echoes along the company corridors of both the Canadian and U.S. property and casualty insurance industries, the first half-year underwriting results from both countries hint at caution. While the Canadian industry benefited…
Insurer Strategies for 2001: balancing the BooksT
November 1, 2000 Sean van Zyl, EditorFollowing a grueling year of devastating performance across the various areas of business – weak rates, rising claim costs, higher expense ratios and volatile investment returns – Canada’s property and casualty insurers may have perhaps turned the corner for the…
GROWTH SIGNS …But Real Earnings?
November 1, 2000 Sean van Zyl, EditorOn paper, the Canadian property and casualty insurance industry’s earnings performance for the first two quarters of this year would strongly suggest at a rebound in real growth. In fact, Canadian insurers came home for the first half of this…
breaking ground for online brokers
November 1, 2000 Vikki SpencerWhen Scot Dalton sold Dalton & Associates brokerage to the Cowan Insurance Group, it was not to step out of the insurance game. On the contrary, Dalton was ready to lead Cowan into the e-commerce world, as the country’s first online, multi-quote brokerage. Now, after two years of planning and development, cowaninsure.com has hit the information superhighway, with long-term plans to stay ahead of the pack.
Surfing the e-business wave
October 1, 2000 AxiomFeeling slightly weary, the five of us walked across the convention center lobby and sank into chairs. My insurance company was the lead sponsor of a two-day business fair titled “The E-business Revolution” and I had invited four of my…
Healthcare insurance: TAKING THE PULSE
October 1, 2000 Jane Voll, director of policy and research and Darrell LeadbetteIncreasingly, automobile insurers are playing a greater role in healthcare financing through provincial healthcare levies and because of automobile accident benefits. In 1999, automobile insurers contributed over $1.1 billion to the Canadian healthcare system. The auto insurance industry, as a…
Quebec broker joins online rush
October 1, 2000 by Canadian UnderwriterFollowing on the heels of Cowan Insurance’s online launch, Quebec brokers Di Perno & Associates has entered the online insurance fray with the launch of “AssureMoi.com Inc.” The site, issued through La Toile du Quebec, the world’s largest French language…
Online insurance launches in Canada
September 1, 2000 by Canadian UnderwriterOntario-based brokerage Cowan Insurance Group has teamed with Internet software developer Open Text Corporation and AOL Canada to introduce the first online, real-time multi-company quotation and buying system in Canada. The “cowaninsure.com” service, which was launched toward the end of…
Kingsway builds on earnings recovery at half-year
September 1, 2000 by Canadian UnderwriterSpecialty insurer Kingsway Financial Services Inc. (TSE:KFS) reported net income of $10.4 million for the first six months of this year compared with $16.2 million achieved for the same period the year previous. Net earnings for the second quarter amounted…