Industry
Canadian property and casualty insurers ended the 2001 financial year with a meager 3% return on equity, with the final quarter industry results showing little improvement over the earlier part of the year with a 0.5% ROE, according to just released Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) data.Speaking at the Swiss Reinsurance Co. Canada’s annual Statistical […]
By Canadian Underwriter | March 12, 2002
3 min read
In the face of public defiance by some key shareholders, the mega-merger of lifecos Clarica and Sun Life was passed by Clarica shareholders yesterday. The deal creates Canada’s largest life insurer, with $398.8 billion in assets under management and combined revenue in 2001 of $23 billion.Dissenters had objected to a break-up fee of $310 million, […]
By Canadian Underwriter | March 7, 2002
1 min read
European airliners represented by the Association of European Airlines (AEA) have rejected an insurance industry proposal for third-party war and terrorism coverage on grounds that the latest offering remains too costly.The AEA estimates that the latest insurance proposal would cost its members an additional Euro 600 million a year in coverage costs. The AEA rejection […]
By Canadian Underwriter | March 6, 2002
2 min read
Montreal-based insurer Optimum General Inc. (TSE: OGI.A) which through five subsidiaries operates across Canada and parts of the U.S. posted a net loss of $2.7 million for the 2001 financial year ended December compared with earnings of $168,000 reported for the previous year. This translates to a loss of 25c a share for the latest […]
By Canadian Underwriter | March 5, 2002
Following the release of a consultation paper last fall, the Financial Services Commission of Ontario has passed, as part of a budget bill, changes to the restrictions on insurer investment portfolios. The changes are to make the province’s regulations more in line with other provincial as well as federal guidelines.Among the provisions is one that […]
By Canadian Underwriter | March 4, 2002
Insurance contracts are sold by insurers to provide peace of mind to the buying public, the summary decision court papers applying to the Whiten v. Pilot final appeal case indicate. Specifically, the Supreme Court of Canada, which recently upheld $1 million in punitive damages that had previously been made against Pilot Insurance Co. in a […]
By Sean van Zyl, Editor | February 28, 2002
4 min read
The Supreme Court of Canada has restored a jury award of $1 million in punitive damages which had been made against Pilot Insurance Co. The cross-appealed Whiten v. Pilot case has been closely watched by insurers due to the magnitude of the punitive award contested, as well as the apparent “shift” by the courts toward […]
February 28, 2002
When Canada's financial services industries caught wind of a government proposal to build a national ombudsman service geared at regulating customer service under the regal eye of Ottawa, companies from banks, investment dealers to insurers reacted swiftly with the creation of their own "all-in-one" countrywide ombudsman service. But, the question remains, will this private sector initiative hold up under political as well as consumer scrutiny?
By Suzanne Wintrob | February 28, 2002
8 min read
On the heels of selling its personal lines book of business to ING, Zurich is now set to sell its Canadian life operations to giant Manulife. The two companies have inked a deal where Manulife will acquire all outstanding shares of Zurich Life for an undisclosed price. Manulife already owns Zurich’s group life and health […]
The World Trade Center (WTC) attacks, combined with the failure of U.S. energy-trading giant Enron, led Canadian-based Fairfax Financial Holdings (TSE: FFH) to a $346 million loss last year, compared to $137.4 million profit in 2000. This works out to a loss of $28.04 per share for 2001, versus a gain of $9.41 the year […]
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