The Chronicle: Issue 2014-48, December 2, 2014


What's Going Through The Intersection of Insurance and Technology?

Address Loss Containment and Security at the Same Time with a Change in Perspective
Insurers frequently struggle to come up with cost-effective and timely solutions for challenges that they know they need to address. In many cases, an outside or third party can help provide the needed help with little to no capital or operational expenses required on from the insurer. All that is really required is a shift in perspective, not a massive shift in internal processes or infrastructures. Big things can be achieved with small steps – if they are strategic.

Brokers: Where Will You Take Cyber Risk?
In planning for the 2015 Insurance-Canada.ca Technology Conference, my IT and Underwriting friends tell me that cyber risk is a hot topic. For sure, there is a fair amount of discussion in the insurance and IT trade press. However, in talking to a few organizations who are actively developing/delivering these products, I hear that there is a slow uptake by Canadian brokers. Question for brokers: Is cyber coverage about to take off? If not, do we just wait for the government to define the product for us?

The Intersection: Insurance-Canada.ca Blog
The Intersection

an Insurance-Canada.ca Blog


Business of Insurance

KPMG report: Transforming Insurance: Securing competitive advantage
The insurance industry is at an inflection point. The digital revolution is transforming the way insurers, reinsurers and brokers do business, impacting the entire value chain. In this report, KPMG explore the ways in which technology can help players in insurance markets transform their capacity to identify trends, plan, collaborate and rapidly respond, adapt and thrive.

Swiss Re: 2015 insurance outlook sees growth opportunities in a difficult environment
The global economy is expected to strengthen modestly next year, according to Swiss Re's latest publication, Global insurance review 2014 and outlook 2015/16. Non-life insurance premiums are expected to grow 2.8% in 2015, supported by strong economic activity in emerging markets. The life insurance sector will be notably stronger in both the advanced and emerging markets, and global in-force premiums are forecast to increase by 4.8% this year and by around 4% in 2015 and 2016. The low yield environment remains a profitability challenge, in particular for life insurers.

Policy Management

InEdge: 4 Analytics categories to focus on to improve underwriting performance
Underwriting is widely recognized as a critical component of an insurance value chain. Because it spans multiple lines of products (e.g., personal, commercial, automobile, home, etc.), finding simple, orthogonal metrics for evaluating, guiding, and improving underwriting team performance is not an easy task. By focusing on four Analytics categories, being Sales, Quality of Service (QoS), Productivity, and Employee Performance, and their corresponding eye-friendly dashboards, underwriting managers can efficiently lead their teams towards achieving their objectives.

Technology

Gartner: Connected ‘things’ will number 4.9 billion in 2015
Gartner, Inc. forecasts that 4.9 billion connected things will be in use in 2015, up 30 percent from 2014, and will reach 25 billion by 2020. The Internet of Things (IoT) has become a powerful force for business transformation, and its disruptive impact will be felt across all industries and all areas of society.

IBM Verse fuses Cloud, Social, Analytics and design innovation to transform the way we work
IBM is reinventing enterprise email with a new freemium social collaboration offering that uses built-in analytics to give individuals a new way to converse, find the right people and information fast, and get work done. IBM Verse stems from the company's investment in design innovation and brings together its leading cloud, analytics, social and security platforms to transform the future of work.

Claims

ICLR releases new book, Cities Adapt To Extreme Rainfall: Celebrating Local Leadership
The Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction has released a new book, Cities Adapt To Extreme Rainfall: Celebrating Local Leadership, which profiles projects in 20 Canadian cities designed to mitigate the impact of extreme rainfall events.

Marketing

Manulife Bank of Canada debt survey: One in five homeowners expects to access home equity to supplement retirement income
Approximately one in five homeowners expects to access their home equity to supplement their retirement income as Canadians struggle to reduce their debt while also preparing for retirement, a new survey by Manulife Bank of Canada shows.

Consumer Information

InsureMy Ltd. launches new full service high-tech insurance brokerage in Alberta and Ontario
InsureMy, a Calgary-based, full service insurance brokerage, has announced the introduction of their unique services in Alberta and Ontario and the official launch of their website. In addition to traditional insurance products, InsureMy expects to further expand with their high-tech product offering that goes beyond coverage; enhancing safety and creating substantial insurance savings opportunities for Canadian drivers, subject to regulatory approval.

IBC: Ontario police Lock It or Lose It campaign warns motorists of property and identity theft
Ontario's Police Chiefs are warning motorists and passengers about the dangers of property and identity theft resulting from unlocked vehicles or the leaving of valuables in plain view. The Province's top cops launched the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police's (OACP) annual Lock It or Lose It campaign in Toronto. The campaign is a crime-prevention program that encourages drivers and passengers to take precautions to protect their vehicles and vehicle contents from theft, particularly during the holiday season.

Edward Jones survey: the insurance “say vs. do” gap
A new survey by Edward Jones reveals that while Canadians say they value the financial well-being of their families and their own quality of life in old age, many are not investing in key forms of protection to safeguard these assets. The survey, completed by Leger, polled Canadians on which types of insurance they've ever purchased and the results reveal that while almost two thirds (64 per cent) say they have purchased life insurance, other important forms of protection, including disability (23 per cent), critical illness (11 per cent) and long-term care (11 per cent), are purchased far less often.

Kanetix partners with APRIL International Travel Insurance on Online Marketplace
Travellers visiting Kanetix.ca who are looking for travel insurance for an upcoming trip can now compare more options than ever before with the addition of APRIL International's travel insurance products.


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