Anti-trust issues unlikely if Intact acquires RSA Canada: Analyst
November 16, 2020 by Greg MeckbachIntact Financial Corp. is unlikely to encounter any opposition from Canada’s competition regulator in acquiring RSA plc’s Canadian insurance operations, an expert from DBRS Morningstar predicts. “We see a material difference between the life insurance market and the P&C market…
Brokers react to Intact’s ‘unbelievable’ international expansion proposal
November 9, 2020 by Greg MeckbachA takeover of RSA Canada by Intact would still leave clients with plenty of choice in property and casualty insurance while making Intact more of an international player, an Ontario broker suggests. However, another notes that there is reason for…
Why the impact of an Intact-RSA combo would vary by province
November 6, 2020 by Greg MeckbachThings could get interesting for brokers in Atlantic Canada if Intact takes over RSA’s Canadian operations, a Saskatchewan broker told Canadian Underwriter Friday. That being said, he felt if the proposed deal announced Thursday goes through, it would still leave…
Supreme Court of Canada to hear coverage dispute over fatal motorcycle accident
April 27, 2020 by Greg MeckbachThe Supreme Court of Canada announced it will hear an auto liability coverage dispute involving RSA Canada, insurer of a motorcyclist who had alcohol in his system while holding a probationary licence. The motorcyclist, Steven Devecseri, was killed May 29,…
Have clients who have temporarily closed? Here’s how they should secure their premises
April 7, 2020 by Adam MalikJust because a business has closed its doors to staff and customers because of the COVID-19 pandemic, risks from fire, combustible materials and flood are still present at their physical buildings even when unoccupied, warned a new report from Allianz…
How to help construction clients who are no longer deemed “essential services”
April 6, 2020 by Adam MalikOntario brokers can expect to receive calls from their clients in the province’s construction industry, some of whom were recently de-listed from the province’s essential services list. Under pressure to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in Ontario, the province recently…
What can go wrong if adjuster fails to obtain coroner’s report
January 3, 2020 by Greg MeckbachAn auto insurer wants to deny liability coverage because its client had alcohol in his blood when he died. The thing is, the insurance company didn’t know its client had alcohol in his blood for three years, which is how…
Why this insurer gives workers 10 extra personal days off a year
September 23, 2019 by Greg MeckbachRemoving the stigma of mental illness is something all industry leaders need to work on, and one of Canada’s biggest insurers is promoting mental well-being by giving workers more time off than they would normally be entitled to. RSA Canada…
How this broker’s exclusive insurer deal went pear-shaped
November 18, 2018 by Greg MeckbachA British Columbia broker that got acquired by a unit of The Co-operators Group Ltd. is in breach of contract with RSA Canada-owned Canadian Northern Shield, an Ontario court has ruled. In 2008, Vancity Insurance Services Ltd. was a brokerage…
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…
What four insurers say about IBAC Data Exchange
August 13, 2018 by Greg MeckbachReducing the workload for human beings is one reason some insurance carriers are participating in part of the Insurance Brokers Association of Canada’s Data Exchange project. “We are constantly looking for ways to eliminate manual processes, to eliminate administrative functions,…
Fairfax Financial board includes former RSA CEO Bob Gunn
May 1, 2018 by Greg MeckbachFormer chief executives of RSA and Guy Carpenter & Company LLC were elected to new terms on the board of directors of Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd., Toronto-based Fairfax announced Friday. Fairfax, the corporate parent of Northbridge Insurance and OdysseyRe, held…