Insurance Companies Act to be amended by new legislation
June 7, 2005 by Canadian UnderwriterGovernment elements of the Insurance Companies Act will be amended based on recent plans to introduce new legislation to modernize the corporate governance framework for Canada’s federally regulated financial institutions, according to Minister of Finance Ralph Goodale.The Insurance Companies Act…
IBC releases submission regarding Government’s consultation paper
June 2, 2005 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) recently sent its submission to the federal Department of Finance on the Government’s consultation paper, “An Effective and Efficient Legislative Framework for the Canadian Financial Services Sector.” Part of “Budget 2005,” the consultation paper…
Winds of Change…
June 1, 2005 Sean van ZylNot unlike the admitted defeat of Britain’s imperialistic ambitions as witnessed by the “winds of change” speech made by that country’s prime minister Harold Macmillan in 1960, the property and casualty insurance industry appears to be facing its own epic…
Canadian Insurance Congress 2005: A Rocky Course
June 1, 2005 Sean van Zyl, EditorAfter the volatile financial performance of the property and casualty insurance industry over the past five years, coupled with the public attacks of politicians and regulatory agencies last year, insurers are facing “rocky times” as they scramble to regain consumer confidence and maintain underwriting discipline, say speakers at this year’s Canadian Insurance Congress, which was recently held in Banff, Alberta. The top concern of the insurance industry is the potential of new draconian regulations being brought into place in light of the controversy sparked by the numerous and ongoing regulatory investigations into intermediary remuneration arrangements and the use of finite reinsurance contracts – the outcome of which could be a significantly different operating landscape.
RIMS 2005 Conference: Revolution or Rebellion?
June 1, 2005 Vikki SpencerLittle did the drafters of the U.S. Declaration of Independence know how intensely to heart their call to free speech and revolutionary thinking would be taken by risk managers who recently met in Philadelphia for the annual Risk & Insurance Management Society (RIMS) conference. The city – which saw the foundation of liberty – was the site of frank dialogue between risk managers, brokers and insurers concerning the alarming regulatory issues now facing the property and casualty insurance industry.
Rethinking Rate Regulation
June 1, 2005 Jane Voll, chief economist at the Insurance Bureau of CanadaThe past three years has seen an unprecedented level of intervention by provincial governments in the setting of auto insurance prices. Over this period, an estimated $1.3 billion in auto insurance premiums has come under direct price controls in the form of mandatory rebates, rollbacks and price freezes. This number will move even higher when further mandatory price dictates come into effect this month in the province’s of Alberta and Newfoundland.
Industry’s poor public image remains top issue for insurers
June 1, 2005 by Canadian UnderwriterThe intense regulatory scrutiny and plummeting consumer confidence that has dogged the property and casualty insurance industry since the onset of the most recent hard market were brought on by the collective actions of insurers, says Ellen Moore, president of…
Robert Lockhart resigns from Hilb Rogal
May 29, 2005 by Canadian UnderwriterIn response to recent scandals surrounding the procurement of improper payments to steer accounts to insurers, the former president and chief operating officer of Hilb Rogal & Hobbs Robert Lockhart has resigned. Hilb Rogal, the seventh-largest U.S. insurance broker, dropped…
PCI stresses need for uniform approach in finite re probes
May 16, 2005 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI) is calling on state regulators to adopt a consistent approach in their investigations into the use of finite reinsurance transactions by insurers. The investigations launched earlier this year by the Securities Exchange…
Guy Carpenter offers comp disclosure on facultative placements
May 9, 2005 by Canadian UnderwriterReinsurance brokerage group Guy Carpenter & Co. Inc. says it will now offer disclosure on compensation arrangements applying to the placement of facultative business globally. The brokerage introduced its "Global Disclosure Doctrine" in December of last year, which outlines the…
The industry’s poor public image remains top issue: IIO
May 8, 2005 by Canadian UnderwriterThe intense regulatory scrutiny and plummeting consumer confidence that has dogged the property and casualty insurance industry since the onset of the most recent hard market were brought on by the collective actions of insurers, says Ellen Moore, president of…
Finite Matters
May 1, 2005 Craig HarrisWell-publicized investigations of “finite risk reinsurance” in the U.S. have cast a pall over many of these “non-traditional” products. Specifically, the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) and New York’s attorney general Eliot Spitzer have put a 2000/2001 arrangement between General Re and American International Group squarely in the spotlight of regulatory scrutiny. As regulators continue to closely monitor the nature of more complex financial reinsurance transactions, the twin themes of legitimate risk transfer and transparency emerge as paramount.