How Guidewire is changing its approach to the market
September 10, 2018 by Greg MeckbachGuidewire Software Inc. is “not interested” in building a services organization and is touting its new analytics and data services group to insurance buyers. The new analytics and data services group – formed after the acquisition in 2017 of modelling…
Where Canada ranks worldwide in cyber breaches
September 7, 2018 by Jason ContantThe importance of obtaining cyber insurance has again hit home, following the release of a report that found by mid-2018, Canada was the country with the third most cyber incidents in the world and ninth most exposed records. Last month,…
How much buyers are willing to pay for online books of business
September 5, 2018 by Jason ContantBuyers are pricing in potential future market disruption, such as online distribution, when buying a broker’s books of business, a P&C transaction advisor told Canadian Underwriter Wednesday. Mike Berris, partner and practice group leader with Vancouver-based Smythe Advisory said he…
IBC’s proposal to prevent carriers from exiting this province’s auto market
September 4, 2018 by David GambrillInsurers in Newfoundland and Labrador are calling on politicians to make structural changes to the province’s auto insurance system, saying their recommendations would better align the province’s auto premiums with those elsewhere in the Atlantic region. Specifically, insurers are calling…
Tim Hortons, franchisees in legal spat over shattering coffee pots
September 1, 2018 Aleksandra Sagan - THE CANADIAN PRESSThe parent company of Tim Hortons is denying a claim by a group of franchisees that the coffee pots they’re required to use have been shattering and injuring employees. Restaurant Brands International says the claims of faulty coffee pots are…
Insurer CEO to personally visit FSCO asking for higher rates
August 30, 2018 by Greg MeckbachThe newly-elected Ontario government should let carriers change their rates without approval from the Financial Services Commission of Ontario, the president of a mutual that writes auto contends. It “makes sense” to require insurers to file rates with FSCO “but…
How to motivate brokers on the front line
August 30, 2018 by Jason ContantBrokerages looking to better motivate frontline workers should optimize play, purpose and potential, while reducing pressure, a recent experiment suggests. In a blog post for Harvard Business Review, authors Lindsay McGregor and Neel Doshi implemented an experiment to transform the…
How cannabis legalization could re-word home insurance policies
August 29, 2018 by Greg MeckbachIf carriers do what one insurance defence lawyer advises, your clients could get new exclusionary language in their home insurance policies as a result of cannabis legalization. Insurers who are concerned about the risk of fire and burglary arising from…
The trade-off to using artificial intelligence to speed up claims
August 29, 2018 by Greg MeckbachCanadian insurers wanting to handle claims like Lemonade are going to have to accept some trade-offs, a Claims Summit speaker said Tuesday. New York City-based Lemonade Insurance Company uses artificial intelligence and says it can handle some claims in three…
Liability risk for private pot retailers
August 28, 2018 by Greg MeckbachYour retail client could be at risk of a lawsuit if it starts selling cannabis, but the exposure may not be the same as the liability risk of a bar serving alcohol, an insurance defence lawyer suggests. Whether a retailer…
Why Canadian insurers want to play in a “regulatory sandbox”
August 27, 2018 by Jason ContantThe Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) wants a “regulatory sandbox” for the P&C insurance industry, something currently not accessible to insurers. “Sandboxes relax specific legal and regulatory requirements to create a safe and conductive space for innovative ideas, enabling companies…
Hub’s Top 3 pot risks
August 23, 2018 by Jason ContantAs cannabis comes closer to being legalized in Canada, Hub International told Canadian Underwriter the three major risks the brokerage has faced while writing cannabis insurance for the past four years. One of them is cash-on-hand, meaning pot producers have money…