Why it’s hard for insurers to price cyber risk
May 1, 2019 by Greg MeckbachIt’s hard for an insurance company to price cyber because clients are reluctant to report losses, industry experts suggest. “You need historical incidents to understand the types of events out there,” Scott Stransky, assistant vice president and principal scientist in…
Is wind “the new water” for Canada’s insurers?
April 25, 2019 by Jason ContantHigh winds contributed in part to most catastrophes in Canada over the past few decades, prompting the need for a new national standard on wind resilience, the Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction (ICLR) said Thursday. A report released by ICLR…
Uber-style platform for expediting appraisals now in Canada
April 16, 2019 by David GambrillAn Uber-style platform to expedite home and auto claims appraisals has made its way into Canada. Offered by WeGoLook, the online and mobile sharing-economy platform provides personalized, onsite data capture for inspections and low-complexity services across the United States. Now…
How climate change affects Canada’s hurricane risk
March 21, 2019 Ryan P. Mulligan, Associate Professor in Civil Engineering, Queen's University - THE CANADIAN PRESSThis article was originally published on The Conversation, an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts. Disclosure information is available on the original site. When tropical cyclone Idai made landfall near Beira, Mozambique…
Ontario’s latest wind storm: is it as costly as last year’s wind cat?
February 25, 2019 by Jason ContantThe strong wind storm that continues across parts of Ontario Monday is being compared to the costliest insured loss event of 2018. Beginning on Sunday, Feb. 24, a powerful, sustained wind storm caused blizzard conditions and damaging winds across Ontario.…
One solution for non-damage business interruption
February 21, 2019 by Jason ContantParametric insurance can help fill a gap in some policies by covering non-damage business interruption, a speaker said Tuesday at AXA XL’s Fast Forward LIVE event in downtown Toronto. Caused by a variety of factors, including severe weather conditions, non-damage…
The impact of hardening Lloyd’s market on Fairfax
February 20, 2019 by Greg MeckbachA tough Lloyd’s market and California’s worst-ever wildfire led to an underwriting loss for Brit Plc, which Toronto-based Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. acquired in 2015. Fairfax officials faced pointed questions during its recent earnings call from one analyst who suggested…
Why your clients will buy insurance only after a disaster
February 12, 2019 by Jason ContantDue to six decision biases, consumers will typically not protect themselves against low-probability, high-consequence events until it is too late, a keynote speaker said recently at the CatIQ Connect conference in Toronto. When consumers decide not to purchase insurance or…
Why the global protection gap is the lowest it’s been in 14 years
January 22, 2019 by David GambrillGlobally, the protection gap in 2018 shrunk to 60% – the lowest level it has been in 14 years, according to a new report on global catastrophes by Aon plc. Extreme weather drove the majority of the globe’s $225-billion worth…
These two provinces now have storm surge and overland flood coverage
January 7, 2019 by Jason ContantHomeowners in Quebec now have storm surge coverage available, while homeowners in Manitoba are covered for overland flood damage, The Co-operators said Monday. Storm surge, which includes rising water levels and waves caused by storms, presents a significant flood risk,…
Recent storm ‘most damaging’ in BC Hydro history
January 2, 2019 THE CANADIAN PRESSVANCOUVER – BC Hydro says December’s massive windstorm was the most damaging in its history and demonstrates improvements are needed in order to be ready for future outages. A report from the Crown corporation says the Dec. 20 storm was…
4 ways AI can improve your performance
October 25, 2018 by Jason ContantArtificial intelligence can be used to better predict weather risk in insurance, such as which customers’ properties may be more affected by severe weather, an Accenture executive said Thursday. One of the four major benefits of AI is enhanced judgement,…