With personal auto insurance rates across the country having peaked almost a year ago, and insurers’ financial results now beginning to show consistent strength, the dark cloud of despair that had hung over the Canadian property and casualty insurance industry over recent years seem to be dissipating. However, the political environment surrounding the auto market remains volatile, a panel of insurer CEOs speaking at this years’ Insurance Brokers Association of Ontario (IBAO) convention say. And, the “cost of the past” in terms of inadequate reserving, as well as brittle relations between companies, brokers and the insuring public as a result of the steep pricing and lack of coverage availability of the latest hard market, are hurdles that have yet to be overcome, they say.
Where there is risk, there is normally insurance coverage available. As risk attracts insurance, the latter attracts the possibility of fraud. In today’s high-tech, high-speed world, both insurers and risk managers face increasing challenges in combating fraud through effective loss control. And, although the sophistication behind fraudulent activities will likely continue to develop, new tools and approaches to combating fraud are delivering excellent results in curtailing claims costs.
A new report published by the Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction shows Ontario residents remain unprepared for an emergency on the scale of last summer’s blackout, or worse.The report, written by Dr. Brenda Murphy of Wilfrid Laurier University, and funded…
Some years ago, I visited a commercial client to review his cover prior to renewal. I could tell that his mind was not fully attentive to matters I was discussing with him. He then turned to me and posed an…
With auto insurance losses over the past two years having left many insurers in the “dark” in terms of how to deal with the costing of the product, there was a certain irony behind a recently held conference which focused on relationships between the various vendors and manufacturers involved in the auto claims chain – for in the midst of the event, the “blackout of 2003” struck. However, despite the adversity of the power outage, the conference’s participants were upbeat regarding a “new light” of cooperation between the various players toward achieving cost efficiency.
Despite low preliminary estimates, the spring blizzard that hit Colorado is now expected to cost insurers US$93.3 million dollars, says the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association (RMIIA).Early estimates had the insured loss at just US$33.6 million, but this has tripled,…
Last December, the Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO) laid seven charges against a Toronto-base paralegal for alleged improprieties in the settlement of an insurance claim. This was followed by the passage of Bill-198 and a subsequent first draft of…
About one-quarter of Americans say insurance fraud is acceptable, according to a new survey from Accenture. In a random sample of 1,000 adults, the study found that nearly 25% think its alright to overstate the value of a insurance claim,…
ACE Bermuda Insurance Ltd., a subsidiary of the ACE Ltd. (NYSE: ACE) group, has agreed to settle its property insurance claim with Silverstein Properties Inc., owners of the World Trade Center (WTC) buildings devastated during the September 11 terrorist attacks.…
The Canadian Coalition Against Insurance Fraud (CCAIF) has handed down its annual “Top Ten” list of insurance fraud schemes, and topping the list is a bilingual fraudster who tried to double file a claim by using both official languages.Other examples…
A new poll, conducted by Pollara, suggests that almost one in four Canadians knows someone who has committed personal injury insurance fraud. These results, commissioned by the Canadian Coalition Against Insurance Fraud (CCAIF), go hand-in-hand with an earlier CCAIF study…
Compounded by consumer needs and stiff competition within the industry, insurance companies are forced to find new and innovative ways to differentiate themselves from their competitors. It is no longer enough to improve the efficiency of internal administration, insurers must…