Issue 2005-48: November 29, 2005
This newsletter is for members of the Canadian Insurance Industry, and those who serve it. The newsletter is published weekly, and notes information mostly about the use of the Internet and related technologies in the industry. Some is international, where we feel it is relevant to Canada.
Distribution
CoVirt Announces 20 Equinox Marketing Centres now in production.
TORONTO, Nov. 21, 2005 - CoVirt Inc. (Canada) announced today the completion of the set up and the move to production of 20 Equinox Financial Services network-member Marketing Centres to CoVirt's VirtGate as their client management solution.
Summary of Responses on the Consultation Paper on Relationships between Insurers and Sales Intermediaries - Achieving Best Practices: CCIR and CISRO.
November 4, 2005 -- The Canadian Council of Insurance Regulators (CCIR) and the Canadian Insurance Services Regulatory Organizations (CISRO) are pleased to release the Summary of Responses on the Consultation Paper on Relationships between Insurers and Sales Intermediaries - Achieving Best Practices.
Hub Barton Acquired Ungaro & Sons.
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, November 2, 2005: Hub International Limited (NYSE/TSX: HBG) announced today the acquisition of Ungaro & Sons Insurance Services Ltd., a leading independent insurance broker based in Kelowna, British Columbia. Ungaro & Sons will become part of Hub International Barton (HUB Barton), a regional hub based in Chilliwack, B.C. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Voluntary short-term disability is the subject of Eastbridge's latest report.
AVON, CONNECTICUT, USA (November 3, 2005) - Short-term disability (STD) continues to be a strong product in the worksite market. In fact, STD products accounted for roughly 16 percent of all worksite/voluntary sales in 2004. Combined with LTD sales (and combo plans), disability sales accounted for almost one-quarter of all worksite sales last year.
Aon Corporation Explores Strategic Alternatives for its Warranty, Credit Insurance and Property & Casualty Businesses.
CHICAGO, IL - November 15, 2005 - Aon Corporation is exploring strategic alternatives relating to the ownership of its warranty, credit insurance and property & casualty underwriting businesses.
CSIO Insurance Portal Status Update
Introduced 25 November, 2005
Four new features were introduced to help improve efficiency and add function:
Consumer Information
Manitoba Public Insurance: 10% dividend heading to Autopac customers - PUB ruling means $58 million rebate plus lower rates for most.
For the second time in five years, Manitobans will receive an Autopac rebate after the Public Utilities Board ordered a one-time dividend equalling 10 per cent of the premium they paid last year.
New report outlines solutions for insurance challenges facing businesses and non-profit organizations in the Atlantic provinces: IBC.
HALIFAX, Nov. 23, 2005 - The Atlantic Task Force on Insurance Availability and Affordability released its final report at a media conference today in Halifax. The report, which makes a number of concrete recommendations intended to help commercial insurance customers and voluntary organizations, calls for action from the insurance industry and government, as well as the businesses and voluntary sector organizations that depend on commercial insurance.
CIHI: Public health programs and prevention account for, on average, only 3% of health spending, says OECD.
November 8, 2005-A new report released today by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) shows that, on average, only 3% of total health expenditure in OECD countries goes toward population-wide prevention and public health programs, while most of the spending is focused on "sick care." According to the OECD, most countries have developed national strategies for public health improvement that include immunization programs, disease screening and other steps to reduce the population's risk of developing communicable and non-communicable diseases. However, only a small proportion of health spending goes toward these types of initiatives.
Claims
Best Practices for Graduated Driver Licensing in Canada: Traffic Injury Research Foundation.
TIRF has released a new report, "Best Practices for Graduated Driver Licensing in Canada" authored by Daniel Mayhew, Herb Simpson, and Deanna Singhal. The report, released on November 8, 2005 describes best practices for graduated driver licensing (GDL) programs for new drivers in Canada. It is intended to set standards for the development of new programs in Canada and for enhancing the effectiveness of those already in place.
Reference and Statistics
North American Life Insurance Activity Declines 2.9% in October : MIB.
(Westwood, Mass. - November 22, 2005) - North American application activity for individually underwritten life insurance declined -2.9% in October, year-over-year, according to the MIB Life Index SM. This marks the Index's ninth consecutive year-over-year decline in the last ten months.
Business of Insurance
Kingsway Announces Agreement with The Robert Plan Corporation.
Toronto, Ontario, November 23, 2005 - Kingsway Financial Services Inc. (TSE:KFS, NYSE:KFS) today announced that it had entered into a program management agreement with The Robert Plan Corporation ('RPC'). RPC provides underwriting and claims administration services to insurance companies in the United States who seek to transfer their assigned risk obligations to a specialist for a fee. The agreement is effective for new and renewal business on and after January 1, 2006.
U.S. Life Insurers Using More Robust Approaches to Measure Investment Risk, According to Latest Tillinghast CFO Survey.
STAMFORD, CT., November 3, 2005 - More than two thirds of life insurance company CFOs (70%) use stochastic modeling techniques to model investment and other risks for many lines of business, according to the latest CFO survey by the Tillinghast business of Towers Perrin. In particular, over half (53%) of respondents use stochastic defaults or credit risk transition matrices to properly model credit risk.
Conning Research Forecast: Continued Strong Property-Casualty Insurance Performance Through 2007.
(Hartford, CT) November 3, 2005 - Property-casualty insurance industry results should be relatively strong from 2005 through 2007, despite 2005's hurricane activity and an increasingly competitive market, according to a new report by Conning Research and Consulting, Inc
eBusiness and Technology
IBM provides innovative technology for online global dialogue.
Vancouver, B.C., Nov. 4, 2005 - Habitat JAM, an unprecedented online global dialogue on urban sustainability, will be held for 72 hours from December 1-3, 2005. Sponsored by the Government of Canada, in partnership with UN-HABITAT and IBM, the Habitat JAM promises to engage, empower and stimulate tens of thousands of global citizens, rich and poor alike, with the ultimate goal of turning ideas into action on critical issues related to urban sustainability.
Voice over Everything (VoE) to Change the Face of Communication in the Workplace, says Gartner.
SYDNEY, Australia, 10 November 2005 - According to Gartner, most chief information officers (CIOs) are currently unaware of the emerging trend for Voice to become embedded in IT applications in a way that is expected to fundamentally change the way voice communication is used in the workplace.
Marketing and the Market Place
Business Travelers Increasingly Go Online to Book Flights While Online Check-in Remains Stable, Accenture Survey Finds.
LONDON; 25 Oct. 2005 - Technology is becoming a larger part of business travelers' experience, according to results of a recent Accenture survey. The semi-annual survey found that more than half (58 percent) of the more than 400 business travelers queried said they book trips online, up from 52 percent in the 2004 survey and 47 percent in 2003. Additionally, more than three-quarters (78 percent) use the Internet to research flight times and availability.
Insurance in the Community
Manulife Financial works with University of Saskatchewan to get Canadians Moving.
SASKATOON, Nov. 22, 2005 - Saskatoon's in motion initiative is spreading across Canada thanks to a generous donation from Manulife Financial to the University of Saskatchewan. The gift of $400,000 will be used for promoting the in motion initiative, providing national training opportunities and furthering research about physical activity based community initiatives.
from Doug:
An unusually warm spell gave me the incentive to get more of the outside chores completed. If only I was well enough organized to put the Christmas lights up before I will freeze my fingers doing so!! .....maybe next year.