The Future of U.S. Property and Casualty Insurance Industry: Six Feet Under?
May 1, 2003 Sean van Zyl, EditorThe popular Charles Dickens quotation, “it was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” would seem to aptly apply when analyzing the financial performance of the North American property and casualty insurance industry over recent years. In fact, the quotation could well be the industry’s tombstone inscription based on analyst, broker, risk management and senior industry management perspectives presented at the National Insurance Leadership Symposium, which was recently held in San Francisco. Looking ahead, analysts and company CEOs predict increased financial volatility as capital continues to hemorrhage from the industry at both the primary and reinsurance levels as a result of ongoing underwriting losses, adverse reserving adjustments and the plummeting value of investment holdings. Does the traditional p&c insurance industry have a future?
Views (May 01, 2003)
May 1, 2003 by Canadian UnderwriterD&D Disability Management, Fair Medicals and Viewpoint Medical Services Inc. have formed a strategic alliance to provide a “one stop shop” for insurance clients. “This alliance reflects the ever-changing needs of the marketplace – people are requesting an easier approach…
Companies feel unprepared to deal with disruption
April 11, 2003 by Canadian UnderwriterTop financial executives and risk managers do not see their companies as fully prepared to face a disruption to top earnings drivers, suggests the annual “Protecting Value Study” by FM Global, the Financial Executives Research Foundation (FERF) and The National…
Lloyd’s posts profit for 2002
April 4, 2003 by Canadian UnderwriterBouncing back from successive years of loss, Lloyd’s of London insurance market posted an overall profit of 834 million pounds for 2002. As well, during the year, net resources of Lloyd’s Society and its members increased 85% over 2001, to…
Clearing Canada’s Brownfields
April 1, 2003 by Canadian UnderwriterIn the late 1990s, CU published several articles on brownfields work being done by the National Round Table on the “Environment and the Economy” (NRTEE), which led to their “State of the Debate” report in 1998. Since then, a further…
OSFI’s Supervisory Ratings: Rating the Risk
April 1, 2003 by Canadian UnderwriterIn 1999, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) – Canada’s federal regulator of financial institutions – released its “Supervisory Framework” outlining an innovative approach to supervision. The framework is risk-based and enhances OSFI’s ability to intervene on…
Expatriate Employees in a World of Risk
March 1, 2003 Daniel Anber, president of XN Holdings, Inc.As a growing number of multi-national corporations relocate key executives on overseas assignment, they are increasingly faced with a challenging array of strategic risk exposures.
Maximizing Risk Dollars
March 1, 2003 David Mair, Risk ExcellenceWhat do you do to get the most from your risk dollar? For many, this appears to be an activity question, with answers ranging from the negotiation and purchase of insurance, to loss prevention and loss control, to risk assessment. For business today, however, we must recognize this question as a value proposition to be answered not with questions about activity but with answers related to the strategic integration of risk management and the benefit it brings the organization as a whole. At a recent session hosted by Aon Reed Stenhouse in Toronto, chief financial officers from major Canadian corporations learned how good risk management fits into the overall corporate strategy.
Oh No… It’s “D&O”
March 1, 2003 Sean van Zyl, EditorWhile price strengthening in the North American commercial insurance marketplace had been well underway before 9/11, the terrorist attacks served as a catalyst that rocketed proper coverage prices upward. It was perhaps an unfortunate coincidence that the financial troubles of…
The D&O Shakeout
March 1, 2003 Craig HarrisShareholder activism, regulatory scrutiny and poor corporate governance practices have opened the floodgates to litigation against directors and officers in the post-Enron U.S. market. How much of this has spilled over to executive risk in Canada? A recently held D&O conference in Toronto looked to providing some direction for Canadian corporations.
Risk Managers Sing the Hard Market Blues
March 1, 2003 Vikki SpencerRisk managers are suffering from a case of the blues. Premium hikes, vanishing capacity, tighter terms and increased expectations from insurers are creating havoc for risk professionals. As they descend on Chicago for this year’s Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS) Conference, the air is filled with apprehension over when the bleeding will stop. Consensus is, while some price and capacity stabilization has occurred, by and large risk managers need to buckle in for a bumpy 2003.
Profile: Walk the Talk
March 1, 2003 Vikki SpencerRisk managers are facing the worst of times. The hard market is in full swing, scandals have shaken corporate America and the terrorist threat continues to loom. But this is also the best of times, says incoming Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS) president Lance Ewing. Risk managers have the chance to show their creativity, to assert their role as the “corporate conscience”, and to help each other weather the rough winds.