Canadian Underwriter


News EmploymentInsurance

Nearly 5.4 million receiving emergency federal aid as requests climb

April 13, 2020 The Canadian Press

OTTAWA – The federal government says nearly 5.4 million Canadians are now receiving emergency aid to replace incomes lost due to COVID-19. The figures this morning show 5.38 million applications have been processed since March 15, a figure that includes

News AdjustersClaimsClaims CanadaCommercial LinesInsuranceLegal

The advice some lawyers give commercial clients over pandemic BI coverage

April 9, 2020 by Greg Meckbach

Brokers advising commercial clients that business interruption is not usually covered during a pandemic should not be surprised if those clients are hearing something different from their lawyers. “I would caution policyholders to thoroughly review their specific policy language before

News InsuranceLegal

MDS ruling begs the question: Are your BI pandemic exclusions iron-clad?

April 9, 2020 Zoran Samac & Rohan Haté *

After recent events surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to a recent Ontario Superior Court decision about business interruption in a nuclear incident, Canadian P&C underwriters may want to take a second look at the wording of their pandemic exclusions

News Commercial LinesInsurance

Brokers seek unified response from insurers on 30-day vacancy clauses

April 9, 2020 by Jason Contant

Canadian brokers want a uniform response from insurers on how to deal with commercial policies that have a 30-day vacancy or unoccupied clause. Most commercial property policies have such an exclusion, meaning that losses or damage to property is excluded

News Commercial LinesInsuranceRisk

COVID 19: Crews aboard cargo ships being denied shore leave for longer periods

April 9, 2020 Michael MacDonald - THE CANADIAN PRESS

HALIFAX – Though international shipping lanes and Canada’s major ports remain open for business, the COVID-19 pandemic is making life miserable for many seafarers. Under the latest rules, Canadian crews aboard most Canadian-flagged cargo vessels have agreed not to leave

News AssociationsClaimsInsurance

Canada’s P&C carriers respond to calls for major premium relief

April 8, 2020 by Jason Contant

Canada’s property and casualty insurance companies have answered the call from brokers and customers for stepped-up relief measures to help cope with the financial impact of COVID-19. “It’s a very unusual set of circumstances, but in spite of that I

News Commercial LinesInsuranceRisk

What to tell ‘non-essential’ clients who are closing their workplaces

April 8, 2020 by Greg Meckbach

If your clients are temporarily closing because of the COVID-19 pandemic, this might be a good time for them to undertake some repairs and let the fire department know they are reducing on-site staff, advises commercial insurer FM Global. “Countless

News BrokersInsuranceMarkets / CoveragesTechnology

How to protect your clients from cybercriminals cashing in on COVID-19

April 8, 2020 by Jason Contant

Brokers advising clients on cyber insurance during the COVID-19 pandemic will want to make sure there is an appropriate loss of income coverage under the policy, similar to other lines of insurance, a specialist insurer said recently. “If we were

News Insurance

Why forcing insurers to cover pandemic is a bad idea

April 8, 2020 by Adam Malik

Insurance companies put in a position to cover business interruption losses regardless of how their commercial contracts were originally constructed could threaten their solvency on a global scale, warns a new report. In addition to negatively affecting the carriers’ liquidity

News Earnings / RatingsRisk

Head of RBC says not to expect quick economic recovery from COVID-19

April 8, 2020 The Canadian Press

TORONTO – The head of the Royal Bank of Canada is warning the economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic will likely be slower and more uneven than originally thought. CEO Dave McKay said Wednesday that the depths of the challenge

News BrokersInsurance

Have clients who have temporarily closed? Here’s how they should secure their premises

April 7, 2020 by Adam Malik

Just because a business has closed its doors to staff and customers because of the COVID-19 pandemic, risks from fire, combustible materials and flood are still present at their physical buildings even when unoccupied, warned a new report from Allianz

News Technology

This $40 product could solve some work-from-home bandwidth problems

April 7, 2020 by Greg Meckbach

Brokerages who are running into computer or telephone problems because they sent workers home during the pandemic could get useful tips from major technology vendors. For example, Extreme Networks Inc. advises its own workers not to rely on their WiFi