Canadian Underwriter


Ramani Ayer
Feature

HartRe Canada Business Picked Up by Endurance

June 1, 2003 by Canadian Underwriter

The Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. has sold the renewal rights to much of its US$700 million global property and casualty reinsurance business under HartRe to Bermuda-based Endurance Specialty Holdings Ltd. A statement released by Endurance says the deal will

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Profile: Mutual Attraction

May 1, 2003 Vikki Spencer

Since their inception in 1696 in London, England, mutual insurers have outlived the ups and downs of the insurance industry cycle, competition from large multi-national carriers and even changes to their own operating style. In Canada, their presence has been felt in rural communities and beyond since 1836. Today, members of the Canadian Association of Mutual Insurance Companies (CAMIC) represent annual premiums of about $1.2 billion and serve 1.5 million policyholders, or about 6% of the total Canadian marketshare. CAMIC president Normand Lafreniere says that, although the issues impacting mutual companies have changed over the last 150 years, their foundation of cooperation remains.

Feature Mergers and Aqcuisitions

Auto Insurance, The Industry’s Orphan Annie

May 1, 2003 Sean van Zyl, Editor

With auto insurance accounting for nearly half of all premiums written in Canada, this once “darling” of the industry has now become the “wayward child” disowned by insurers as underwriting losses stemming primarily from soft-tissue bodily injury claims and tort costs continue to spiral out of control countrywide. Notably, insurers were forced to adjust their reserves by nearly two-thirds of a billion dollars last year as a result of an adverse development on auto business. Although several of the provinces are currently addressing legislative product reform initiatives in a bid to curtail auto losses and the barrage of premium hikes implemented by the insurance industry last year, insurers remain cautious in their market dealings, with many companies having “capped” writing of new business. The result has been a dearth of underwriting capacity, with Ontario and the Atlantic Canada region being particularly hard hit. As insurers continue to “shun auto” in wait of political reform, many in the industry wonder whether the product will ever regain attraction.

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Nuked Covers?

April 1, 2003 Craig Harris

Insurance and reinsurance companies are trying to get on the same page when it comes to exclusions, particularly for fire following nuclear incidents. According to sources, it’s a work in progress. Primary insurers are caught between a classic rock and

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Insight: Beating the Capital Drum

March 1, 2003 Sean van Zyl, Editor

While the beat of war drums from down south might currently sound distant to those in the Canadian property and casualty insurance industry, insurer CEOs believe that the restructuring turmoil underway in the U.S. – which has seen some major

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Illusion or Reality? CSIO Portal Launch Looms

February 1, 2003 Sean van Zyl, Editor

Once again, the Centre for the Study of Insurance Operation’s (CSIO) intranet-based insurance portal is set for imminent release. As insurers and brokers hold their breath in the countdown to the project’s first-phase April launch date, the industry remains charged with mixed feelings of “general optimism” as well as “uncertainty” based on the many unknown factors that could result in success or failure of the portal over the longer-term. The CSIO points out, however, that one of the biggest hurdles having thwarted past attempts at achieving an industry-wide online, real-time electronic processing solution has been overcome – by the time of the launch date the portal will be carrying a “critical mass” of insurance companies with strong commitment by brokers to sign on. Has the CSIO finally pulled the industry online technology rabbit from the hat?

John Greb, vice president claims at Allstate Canada
Feature

Claims Management Strategies 2003: Competing Interests

January 1, 2003 Vikki Spencer

What promised to be the “year of the rebound” in 2002 was anything but. Despite price hardening, claims have continued to grow, particularly with never-ending medical payouts on auto claims. And, this is just the tip of the iceberg facing

Feature Mergers and Aqcuisitions

Profile: Adjusters Preparing for Change

January 1, 2003 Vikki Spencer

No one would argue the insurance industry is one that stands still, particularly not in today’s market. For adjusters, the changes are keenly felt, impacting how they do their jobs on a daily basis. From mergers and acquisitions to changing

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Homeowner Property Losses: Underwater

January 1, 2003 Susan Vella, senior vice president of personal insurance at Chub

Water-related losses on homeowner property covers seem to be seeping increasingly into the red-ink. While insurers have been battling the onslaught of losses arising from auto business, water poses a new threat to personal property covers, one which insurers can

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Smash! Birth of the Ace

January 1, 2003 Sam Malatesta, vice president of marketing & insurance relations

Both insurers and their collision repair partners are facing difficult times, with costs rising and marketshare scarce. Consolidation in either industry has not brought about the kind of cost efficiency dreamed of. Perhaps it is time to see “the big

Stan Griffin
Feature

U.S. terrorism insurance legislation carries through

December 1, 2002 by Canadian Underwriter

The U.S. Congress has finally put the seal on a terrorism legislation package, approved by both the House and Senate and signed into law by president George Bush. The “Terrorism Reinsurance Act” sets up excess coverage for terrorism losses wherein

Patrick King
Feature

Reinsurance Strategies 2003: Keeping the Boat Afloat

November 1, 2002 Sean van Zyl, Editor

While the underlying tone of last year’s reinsurance treaty negotiations in the aftermath of 9/11 was “price! price! price!” – with an average upward rate adjustment of about 40% having been implemented across the Canadian marketplace – the 2003 renewals are likely to be driven by a tightening of coverage terms and increased use of exclusions, say CEOs partaking in CU’s annual “Reinsurance Strategy Outlook”. That said, pricing will most definitely be a factor in the upcoming treaty renewal round, with certain classes of business such as liability – which has incurred significant losses primarily as a result of the hemorrhaging auto markets – likely to face rate adjustments of between 40% to 80%. Exclusions on emerging perils such as asbestos, mold and nuclear will also feature dominantly in the renewals. Overall, the CEOs say, expect reinsurers to apply detailed underwriting as international pressure continues to restrain capacity until the tumultuous waters of the marketplace return to a profitable calm.