The Chronicle: Issue 2011-12, March 22, 2011
Policy and Product Management
Guidewire Policy Administration Solution Goes Live with Kentucky Farm Bureau.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. and SAN MATEO, Calif., March 17, 2011 - Kentucky Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company ("KFB"), the largest Property/Casualty insurer in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and Guidewire Software® today announced that KFB is live on Guidewire PolicyCenter and is realizing significant benefits from its use of the system.
Distribution
comScore Releases Expanded Online Auto Insurance Benchmarker Covering More Insurers and Aggregator Sites.
RESTON, VA, March 4, 2011 - comScore, Inc., a leader in measuring the digital world, today announced the availability of an expanded competitive set of insurers and aggregator sites for its online auto insurance benchmarker. In Q4 2010, these additional sites accounted for 724,000 submitted quotes, making up 8 percent of quotes submitted online.
The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers Unveils Sales Innovation Program.
WASHINGTON, D.C. - March 2, 2011 - The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers announced today a Sales Innovation program to provide members with comprehensive sales communication guidance, best practices, education, toolkits and templates to help them with every phase of the sales cycle. The program takes a fresh look at a wide range of sales communication situations to help producers to attract and close more of the right kinds of new business.
ProspX Expands Real-Time Communication and Collaboration Platform to Assurex Global Partners in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
Austin, TX - March 15, 2011 - ProspX, Inc., developer of the first on-demand search and sales collaboration solution for the commercial insurance industry will extend the ProspX platform to Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA)with its relationship with Assurex Global. Via the Assurex Global XpertConnect initiative, ProspX enables Assurex Global Partners to connect and collaborate internally within the partner network and externally across the insurance carrier landscape.
Claims
Crawford & Company (Canada) Inc. Wins Insurance-Canada.ca Technology Award for CMS Property ADVANTAGE.
TORONTO (March 11, 2011) - John Sharoun, chief executive officer, Crawford & Company (Canada) Inc., is pleased to announce that Crawford has received an Insurance-Canada.ca Technology Award for its CMS Property ADVANTAGE software. This award recognizes organizations whose implementations of technology in the Canadian property and casualty and life insurance industries show the greatest positive impact on their business.
TIRF-Prepared Report: The Alcohol Crash Problem in Canada.
Each year, sponsored by Transport Canada and Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators (CCMTA), TIRF captures detailed information on persons fatally injured in motor vehicle crashes on or off public highways in Canada. This includes data on the presence and quantity of alcohol detected by chemical tests on blood, urine or other body fluids. This information is added to the TIRF fatality database, which is historically intact to 1973.
eBusiness and Technology
Novarica Personal Lines Insurers Embrace Technology in Response to Market and Regulatory Challenges.
NEW YORK - In a new sector report published today, Business and Technology Trends: Personal Lines, research and advisory firm Novarica looks at recent technology initiatives by personal lines insurers and highlights top issues for 2011. Novarica's research finds that personal lines insurers are focusing on four key areas in their technology strategies.
Marketing and the Market Place
CFIB and Scotiabank Launch Challenge to Recognize Impact of Small Business Owners on Their Communities.
TORONTO, March 4, 2011 - Scotiabank, in partnership with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), have launched the Small Business Big Impact Challenge, which shines a spotlight on small business owners who are positively impacting their communities in the areas of employment, innovative products and services, as well as leadership.
eMarketer Healthy Growth for Ecommerce as Retail Continues Shift to Web.
MARCH 17, 2011 - According to the US Department of Commerce, US retail ecommerce sales reached $165.4 billion last year, for 14.8% growth over 2009. This represented a strong comeback for online retail after the recession, and healthy growth will continue this year. eMarketer expects online shopping dollars, excluding travel, digital downloads and event tickets, to exceed $188 billion in 2011. Double-digit sales growth will taper off through 2015 as ecommerce continues to mature.
Business of Insurance
RIMS: An Overview of Widely Used Risk Management Standards & Guidelines.
NEW YORK (March 15, 2011) - Today, RIMS announced the release of its latest executive report, An Overview of Widely Used Risk Management Standards & Guidelines. The report, a joint production of the RIMS Standards & Practices and RIMS Enterprise Risk Management Committees, is designed to provide the reader with a view of six widely used risk management standards, guidelines and self-described "best practices" to help identify common elements in each and to simplify the arduous process of wading through competing standards, frameworks and guidelines related to risk management.
Guy Carpenter Publishes New Insurers' Guide To Succeeding Under Solvency II.
New York, March 10, 2011 - Guy Carpenter & Company, LLC, the leading global risk and reinsurance specialist and a member of Marsh & McLennan Companies, today announced the release of a special report, Succeeding under Solvency II – Pillar One: Capital Requirements. The paper is the first in a series of Guy Carpenter reports analyzing Solvency II and its attendant issues as they are finalized over the next several months.
Conning Research: 2010 U.S. Insurance Mergers & Acquisitions Up Significantly, Reversing Five-Year Decline.
(Hartford, CT) March 14, 2011 - Insurance mergers and acquisitions in the U.S. picked up momentum in 2010. Sharp increases were seen for insurance service providers and distribution targets, a potential leading indicator of market shift. A prominent theme underlying insurance company transactions was selectively targeted bolt-on acquisitions of specialized units, according to a new study by Conning Research & Consulting.
Our People
Aon Hewitt Best Employers in Canada Studies Focus on Increasing Employee Engagement.
TORONTO, March 9, 2011 - Aon Hewitt, the global human resource consulting and outsourcing business of Aon Corporation, announced today the official launch of the annual Best Employers in Canada studies. The data available to participating organizations enables them to not only measure their employees' engagement level, but to pinpoint exactly where they should concentrate efforts to increase employee engagement.
Consumer Information
Advocis: There are Ponzi scheme warning signs.
Toronto, March 14, 2011 - In light of the declaration by the Competition Bureau of March as Fraud Prevention Month, Advocis, The Financial Advisors Association of Canada has put up a few red flags as a means of helping people avoid becoming victims of a Ponzi scheme.
IBAO: Protect Your Home from Water Damage.
(Toronto, Ontario), March 17, 2011. Today, the Insurance Brokers Association of Ontario (IBAO) is encouraging Ontarians to prepare for the potential damaging effects increased water levels can have during this lengthening rainy season - most notably on their personal property.
from Doug:
I took Dad last week to buy a grave marker. Dad had had his grandfather's stone restored a few years ago, so we went to the same place. The memorial stone provider has kept up with the times. No more marble – it doesn't last. He sources almost all of his granite from India; it arrives as polished blanks. His son will do the stone's design for us this week, on his CAD system, and email us the layout for approval. When the stone is engraved, it is fastened to a cutting table, the laser positioned – and then you just push the computer button. But, nature still rules the roost – the ground must dry out enough so they can dig a four-foot hole for the footing, to get below the frost line. The ground won't be ready until about mid-May. Mum's at peace now; there is no great rush for this last step.