If laws get passed retroactively changing business interruption policy wording so that pandemic losses now get covered, insurers will likely launch legal challenges that will be looked at by high court judges, Fairfax Financial CEO Prem Watsa suggests. During Fairfax’s…
Commercial rate increases gradually became steeper in 2019 and should continue like this for some time, says Prem Watsa, chairman and CEO of Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. Toronto-based Fairfax, the parent company of Northbridge Financial, recently reported a 21.6% increase…
Asbestos-related commercial liability claims could soon reach a peak, but they continue to be a concern for the property and casualty insurance industry, suggests Prem Watsa, founder and chairman of Toronto-based Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. “Asbestos has been a problem…
Insurance premiums are up nearly 14% for carriers owned by Fairfax Financial, and much of that is due to price increases, the holdings company’s president suggests. “In my career here – 16 years – I haven’t seen anything quite like…
If a blockbuster insurer merger gets announced tomorrow, it probably won’t involve Toronto-based Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd., which has grown steadily through insurer acquisitions over the past 34 years. “We are not looking to add in a significant way from…
The hardening commercial insurance market has resulted in double-digit price increases for some of Fairfax Financial’s insurers, with rates in some lines increasing by nearly a third. “Price increases are significant, some lines up as much as 30%,” said Paul…
David Bonham, chief financial officer of Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd., died suddenly this past weekend, the Toronto-based company announced Tuesday. Fairfax is the corporate owner of Northbridge Insurance and several international property and casualty insurers, including OdysseyRe, Brit PLC, Allied…
Old medical malpractice claims with Allied World Assurance Company are still affecting the bottom line of Canada’s Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd., which bought the majority of Allied World nearly two years ago. With a combined ratio of 102.3%, Zug, Switzerland-based…
While Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. is not ruling out the possibility of buying small specialty insurance players, don’t expect the firm to buy any big insurers any time soon. Toronto-based Fairfax, whose holdings include Northbridge Insurance, bought the majority of…
Toronto-based Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. plans to buy the remainder of Lloyd’s insurer Brit PLC within the next couple of years, Fairfax president Paul Rivett said Friday. Toronto-based Northbridge Insurance and Stamford, Conn.-based OdysseyRe are among the insurance subsidiaries owned…
As Canadian insurers struggle with auto claims and weather-related losses, relief may be in sight in the form of interest rate increases. “We think interest rates will go up over time because the economy of the U.S. is doing very…
Despite nearly US$100 billion in hurricane losses in 2017, insurance buyers are not experiencing a hard market like they did after the 2001 terror attacks that brought the World Trade Centre down, the head of Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. suggests.…