Risk
Waiting in the wings like nervous actors on opening night, risk managers are preparing for the upcoming insurance renewal season, unsure of the reception before them. Over recent years they have received a less than warm greeting from underwriters. But, recent surveys of the commercial insurance marketplace suggest that there may well be a "turning point" near - or at the least a "moderation" of the hard market which has dictated pricing for the last two years. However, CU's annual roundup of Canadian risk management views indicates that the hard market is far from over, although its intensity has shifted from property to casualty/liability lines. And, in light of recent catastrophes from SARS to the "blackout of 2003", the pressure from corporate boardrooms has increased on risk managers.
By Vikki Spencer | August 31, 2003
10 min read
From newspaper headlines to the corporate boardroom, risk management is becoming a high profile proposition. As companies react to stories of corporate scandals and multi-million-dollar lawsuits, how does this align with the long-term risks facing corporations daily. A recent study compared the views of risk managers and financial executives on the greatest threats to their corporations, as well as the best means of addressing these threats.
By Perry Brazeau Canada division manager at FM Global | August 31, 2003
5 min read
According to the Insurance Bureau of Canada's (IBC) "Facts 2002", the individual perils that comprise severe thunderstorms - tornado, hail and straight-line winds - have been responsible for more than half of the natural catastrophe losses incurred by Canadian insurers over the past 20 years. While the earthquake threat in Canada is very real and must be managed, insurers should not ignore the risk of significant losses from severe thunderstorms.
By David Lalonde & Dr. Tim Doggett | August 31, 2003
Those in the industry who had been looking forward to an easy-going summer would have been jolted by the series of adverse events that seemed to cascade one after the other in the final stages of the season. Basically, short of pestilence (although would mad cow disease qualify in this category?) insurers were faced with […]
By Sean van Zyl, Editor | August 31, 2003
4 min read
No one would disagree that the world of risk management has changed completely over recent years. Risk managers of today have to contend with corporate scandals and property risk exposures that before the 9/11 terrorist attacks were inconceivable. For many risk managers this is also the first real hard insurance market they have encountered during their careers. It is in such times that the role of professional bodies become invaluable to their members. And, as veteran risk managers Glen Frederick and Anne Chalmers prepare for this year's RIMS Canada conference to be held in Victoria, B.C., they promise that the event will be very much focused on the tools and solutions available to risk managers during such volatile times.
August 31, 2003
Canada's highest court recently made it a lot easier for insurers to put fire-following exclusions for severe catastrophic incidents into multi-peril policies. The question now is whether provincial legislators will respond with what many in the insurance industry - particularly the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) - say are much-needed changes to legislation across the country.
By Craig Harris | August 31, 2003
9 min read
As this is being read, hundreds of wildfires are burning in the interior of British Columbia, and they could very well make Canadian insurance history.
By Glenn McGillivray | August 31, 2003
7 min read
The complexity of today's business environment is largely a result of both the volume of change and the speed at which it occurs. Driven by shareholder expectations, the scrutiny of regulators and the demands of consumers, corporations are learning that managing risk is significantly different than it was even three years ago.
By Garry McDonell, senior vice president at Aon ReedStenhouse | August 31, 2003
With auto insurance losses over the past two years having left many insurers in the "dark" in terms of how to deal with the costing of the product, there was a certain irony behind a recently held conference which focused on relationships between the various vendors and manufacturers involved in the auto claims chain - for in the midst of the event, the "blackout of 2003" struck. However, despite the adversity of the power outage, the conference's participants were upbeat regarding a "new light" of cooperation between the various players toward achieving cost efficiency.
The fact that there is a dearth of talented new recruits coming into the insurance and risk management fields is hardly hot news. There are more than 200 property and casualty insurance companies, 7,500 brokerages and 1,500 independent adjusting firms employing about 110,000 people, according to the Insurance Institute of Canada (IIC) - not to mention risk management professionals, lawyers, and others associated with the industry. With most insurance education programs boasting 100% placement rates for graduates, the question is why are young people not choosing insurance as a career?
By Teresa Howe | August 31, 2003
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