Industry
U.S. property and casualty insurers disclosed net income of US$2.9 billion for the 2002 financial year compared with a net loss of US$7 billion reported the year before, according to data collected by the Insurance Services Office Inc. (ISO) and the National Association of Independent Insurers (NAII). The industry’s latest annual return translates to a […]
April 30, 2003
2 min read
Risk
Since their inception in 1696 in London, England, mutual insurers have outlived the ups and downs of the insurance industry cycle, competition from large multi-national carriers and even changes to their own operating style. In Canada, their presence has been felt in rural communities and beyond since 1836. Today, members of the Canadian Association of Mutual Insurance Companies (CAMIC) represent annual premiums of about $1.2 billion and serve 1.5 million policyholders, or about 6% of the total Canadian marketshare. CAMIC president Normand Lafreniere says that, although the issues impacting mutual companies have changed over the last 150 years, their foundation of cooperation remains.
By Vikki Spencer | April 30, 2003
6 min read
Some property and casualty insurers rode the stock wave of the late 1990s, only to crash back to reality with the nasty downturn in equity markets over the past two years. Although most industry assets are held conservatively in bonds, investment income tailed off sharply in 2002, with few signs of reprieve this year. The recently introduced minimum capital test (MCT) and new accounting rules are prompting insurers to carefully balance risk profile with investment strategy. For some, it is a task easier said than done.
By Craig Harris | April 30, 2003
8 min read
The 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?
By Sean van Zyl, Editor | April 30, 2003
9 min read
Claims
While proponents of the new Ontario auto reform legislation anticipate relief for a number of issues facing automobile insurers, some fear it will further expose a smoldering crisis that has been plaguing the industry for several years now – a shortage of active, qualified and experienced bodily injury (BI) claims adjusters. When Bill-59 was passed […]
By Lorri Frederick | April 30, 2003
Why are the roles of selling, servicing and processing often blurred in brokerages? It usually points back to the principal and executive team. A clear definition of accountabilities can get the right people in the right jobs.
By Rick Bauman | April 30, 2003
5 min read
In a recent decision, the B.C. Court of Appeal stated the following: "[the] bank and its outsourcer do not need provincial insurance licenses to sell credit card balance insurance." The court case, which involved Scotiabank and a telesales vendor in the selling of credit card insurance which had been primarily opposed by the B.C. Superintendent of Financial Institutions, could have broad-reaching implications nationally for the retailing of insurance products where provincial and federal regulations come into conflict.
By Stuart Carruthers | April 30, 2003
7 min read
Home
Canada’s property and casualty insurers can take heart that the new industry ombuds service is seeing a slow volume of complaints making their way into mediation, says Lea Algar, chair of the General Insurance OmbudsService (GIO). Speaking at the Canadian Insurance Accountants Association (CIAA), Algar says that while there have been a number of complaints […]
1 min read
D&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 to the assessment process,” explains Lou D-Angelo, president of D&D Disability. The new central number […]
3 min read
With auto insurance accounting for nearly half of all premiums written in Canada, this once "darling" of the industry has now become the "wayward child" disowned by insurers as underwriting losses stemming primarily from soft-tissue bodily injury claims and tort costs continue to spiral out of control countrywide. Notably, insurers were forced to adjust their reserves by nearly two-thirds of a billion dollars last year as a result of an adverse development on auto business. Although several of the provinces are currently addressing legislative product reform initiatives in a bid to curtail auto losses and the barrage of premium hikes implemented by the insurance industry last year, insurers remain cautious in their market dealings, with many companies having "capped" writing of new business. The result has been a dearth of underwriting capacity, with Ontario and the Atlantic Canada region being particularly hard hit. As insurers continue to "shun auto" in wait of political reform, many in the industry wonder whether the product will ever regain attraction.
13 min read
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