Debate rages over whether a cyber attack is an act of war
April 18, 2019 by Jason ContantCan a cyber attack be considered an act of war? That issue came to light in October of 2018 when international food and beverage company Mondelez International sued its insurer Zurich American Insurance Company for declining coverage to Mondelez following…
Credential stuffing: Canada’s newest cyber threat
April 15, 2019 by Jason ContantA new cyber threat called “credential stuffing” is emerging, and Canada is the third-most targeted country in the world, according to a new report. Credential stuffing is when hackers take a stolen username and password and then run it through…
Is the reserve release tank running on empty?
April 15, 2019 by David GambrillThe Canadian property and casualty industry saw its reserve releases contract in 2018 to their lowest level in seven years, according to MSA’s Q4 2018 Quarterly Outlook. Expressed as a percentage of loss development margin, reserve releases last year amounted…
How will reputational harm coverage evolve?
April 8, 2019 by Jason ContantWill reputational harm coverage grow into its own coverage or will it remain sublimited, as is often the case? There is currently a lot of variance within the market in how this coverage is offered, if at all. Some insurers…
Why insurers are not calling it a hard market
April 5, 2019 by Greg MeckbachYour clients may be paying higher rates but hard market may not be the right way to describe it, speakers suggested at a recent insurance conference. “I don’t personally know if I would call it a hard market yet. What…
Why brokers need to check their dec pages
April 4, 2019 by David GambrillA Manitoba broker was fined $1,000 fine for not checking to make sure his client’s request for a Single Limit Endorsement was included as part of the client’s home insurance coverage. It wasn’t, as it turns out, and the client…
The case for scaling intelligent automation technologies
April 2, 2019 by Jason ContantThere is a direct correlation between scalability of intelligent automation (IA) technologies and financial performance, a new KPMG International study has found. Based on a survey of nearly 600 business leaders (including 100 top-level executives) across 13 countries, including Canada,…
Major auto coverage change now in effect in this province
April 1, 2019 by Greg MeckbachAuto coverage is changing for British Columbia motorists effective today. Accident benefits coverage from Insurance Corporation of B.C. has more than doubled from $300 per week to $740 a week. That is one of several changes – for claims made…
How this insurer tries to “wow” brokers and customers
March 28, 2019 by Jason ContantOffering consistency and going back to basics are just two of the ways Trisura Guarantee Insurance Company tries to stay one step ahead of the competition. Basic things like responding promptly to brokers’ inquiries can make a significant difference, suggested…
AIG Canada to stop underwriting new individual personal policies
March 28, 2019 by Jason ContantAIG Canada is pulling out of writing personal lines business in Canada. AIG communications director Lynn Woodburn confirmed to Canadian Underwriter Wednesday evening that it would no longer underwrite new policies in personal lines. This confirmed speculation among brokers that…
These Lloyd’s syndicates have shut down
March 27, 2019 by Greg MeckbachToronto-based Fairfax Financial Holdings is among the insurers who own Lloyd’s syndicates that were shut down at the end of 2018. The Corporation of Lloyd’s released Wednesday a list of the eight syndicates that stopped trading as of Dec. 31.…
What ransomware attacks cost your clients
March 21, 2019 by Jason ContantBrokers selling cyber insurance may want to pay attention to a recent statistic: the average financial cost of downtime to a Canadian business following a ransomware attack is 7.5 times higher than the average ransom requested per incident. Canada not…