REFLECTIONS and CHANGE
December 1, 2000 Sean van Zyl, EditorThe Canadian Risk & Insurance Management Society’s (CRIMS) 25th annual conference – which was recently held in Edmonton, Alberta – centered on “Reflections” as an underlying theme for the event. The Alberta chapter of CRIMS, which organized this year’s event,…
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…
ICBC shaves claim costs
September 1, 2000 by Canadian UnderwriterWith revenue growth exceeding costs for the third year in a row for 1999, the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) was able to increase its rate stabilization reserve to $381 million. The public insurer’s net income for last year…
MPI offers drivers a break
September 1, 2000 by Canadian UnderwriterManitoba’s drivers could see lower rates on their insurance next year as a result of a strong financial showing by the Manitoba Public Insurance Corporation (MPI) for the fiscal year ending February 29, 2000. MPI saw its net income rise…
COMMERCIALIZING information technology
September 1, 2000 David Plouffe, principal at Insurance Technology Advisors Ltd.At the recent 2000 Canadian Insurance Congress held in Whistler, a panel of information technology executives drew focus to “commercialization of information technology”. Among the speakers was British Columbia’s industry luminary, Lawry Shand, who provided an insurance perspective on the…
Empowering leadership in the “technology millennium”
August 1, 2000 Sean van Zyl, EditorReforming company management structures to deal with the rapidly evolving marketplaces of financial services formed the central focus of the International Insurance Association Inc.’s (IIA) 36th annual conference, which was recently held in Vancouver. The prime drivers of change impacting…
Better Insuring With Information
August 1, 2000 David Yeo, Ph.D., senior business solutions specialist of data mThere’s an old saying “what you don’t know can’t hurt you.” But, in the insurance business today, this adage no longer holds true–what you don’t know can definitely hurt your organization’s bottom-line. The danger comes in not knowing some of…
Reinsurance market innovations: Staying Alive
July 1, 2000 Glenn McGillivray, head of corporate communication at Swiss ReinWhat are some of the world’s reinsurers doing to move forward amid what has been the worst market downturn in recent memory?
Corporate Tax Drive – it’s a home run
June 1, 2000 JANE VOLL, Director of Policy and Research at the Insurance BureEach year, for the last several years, federal and provincial governments have collected $4 billion in taxes from home, car and business insurance — an amount equal to the industry’s entire value-added. This 100% tax burden is more than three…
THE AIR OUT OF THE BAG
May 1, 2000 Vikki SpencerAirbags recovered from written-off vehicles will be used for collision repairs in British Columbia, likely before the end of the year, says a researcher at the province’s public insurance organization. The decision follows testing on salvaged airbags conducted by the…
Toronto City struck down in bodyshop fight
December 1, 1999 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Supreme Court of Ontario has ruled in favour of insurers who mounted a challenge against a City of Toronto bylaw outlawing insurers from directing their insureds to preferred bodyshops. “This is a big victory for the industry and for…
Letters (November 01, 1999)
November 1, 1999 by Canadian UnderwriterDear Editor, I was so pleased to read that Jan Lowther had received the “Golden Torch” award recently in Colorado. Jan has been the “guiding light” for risk management communications in Canada for many years and her trustworthy and interested…