Dominion sets Chieftain launch
March 1, 1999 by Canadian UnderwriterDominion of Canada General Insurance has joined the growing rank of insurance companies offering broker call centre services. In the spring of this year Dominion will launch Chieftain Insurance in the Alberta and Ontario personal lines markets. Dominion president George…
Weathering the storm
March 1, 1999 Sean van Zyl, EditorThere are few leaders in the Canadian property and casualty insurance industry applying an optimistic view of business and earnings growth in 1999. In fact, premium growth across the lines is unlikely to exceed the country’s expansion of gross domestic…
Dispute resolution for the new millennium
March 1, 1999 by Canadian UnderwriterIn response to the growing need for alternative and effective mechanisms in dealing with potential legal disputes, British Columbia’s insurance industry recently launched the Insurance Dispute Resolution Services of B.C. One of the more innovative features of this resolution process…
Lombard and London Guarantee tie the knot
March 1, 1999 by Canadian UnderwriterRichard Patina, president of Lombard Commercial Lines and Robert Taylor, president of London Guarantee have announced the formation of a strategic alliance between the two insurance companies to refer business that falls within their respective areas of specialty. Lombard will…
Batten down the hatches FOR 99
March 1, 1999 Lowell Conn and Sean Van ZylReduced profitability, rising underwriting losses, increased competition and higher technology costs are likely to form the stage for the North American property and casualty insurance industry in 1999, according to the vast majority of respondents in an Insurance Information Institute (III) survey conducted at the annually held Joint Industry Forum which recently took place in New York City.
Reliance launches earnings protection U.S.
March 1, 1999 by Canadian Underwriter-based Reliance National, a subsidiary of Reliance Group, has introduced Enterprise Earnings Protection Insurance (EEPI), the first insurance policy designed to protect publicly held companies against earnings disruption volatility and adverse results. EEPI covers a wide range of circumstances that…
The lights dim on
March 1, 1999 Ted Belton, director of research at RBC Underwriting ManagementThe fair-weather profit years which the property and casualty insurance industry has enjoyed since the mid-1990s is likely to run into a storm in 1999 with companies generating single digit returns on equity (ROE). Projections based on third-quarter StatsCan data…
Coming Events (March 01, 1999)
March 1, 1999 by Canadian UnderwriterAnnouncements in Coming Events are run free of charge as a service to the industry. Items should be submitted by the first of the month prior to the month in which the announcement is to appear. Insurance Bureau of Canada:…
RIMS 37th Annual Conference rides into Dallas
March 1, 1999 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Dallas Convention Centre will host the 37th Annual RIMS Conference & Exhibition, expected to draw more than 9,000 risk management professionals from April 11th to the 16th. The conference will feature guest speaker Colin L. Powell, former U.S. Joint…
Ontario auto falls again
March 1, 1999 by Canadian UnderwriterPrivate passenger auto insurance rates in Ontario decreased during the fourth quarter of 1998 according to the latest rate information published by the Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO). This is the 10th successive quarterly decrease since 1996. Of the…
OBITUARY
March 1, 1999 by Canadian UnderwriterTony Thompson, founding publisher of Thompson’s World Insurance News passed away in his sleep in Toronto recently. He was 67. Thompson, widely respected throughout the insurance and media industries, started his weekly publication in 1988 as a one-man operation and…
A turning point in professionalism
March 1, 1999 by Canadian UnderwriterThe risk management profession is coming of age, says Susan Meltzer the incoming president of the Risk and Insurance Management Society Inc. Meltzer will be the fifth Canadian president to take the reins of North America’s most prestigious organization representing the development of risk managers. She is also the first Canadian woman to occupy the presidency chair of RIMS, a task she does not find daunting in the least. Her message: it’s time for risk managers to look ahead.