Issue 2006-29: July 18, 2006
Claims
MSB Improves, Expands CAT-Ready Claim Support.
LOS ANGELES - JULY 10, 2006 - Marshall and Swift / Boeckh (MSB), the leading worldwide provider of building cost data and estimating technology to the property insurance industry, announces newly expanded claim-support resources especially beneficial for CAT adjusters, who depend on quick service to meet the urgency of their assignments.
Automated Benefits Signs Up 3,000th User of Symbility Solutions' Mobile Claims™ System.
WATERLOO, ONTARIO - June 20, 2006 - Symbility Solutions Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Automated Benefits Corp. today is pleased to announce a new milestone for the adoption of its mobile claims processing solution by hitting the 3,000 user mark.
Consumer Information
StatsCan Study: The death of a spouse and the impact on income.
July 10, 2006 - Senior women suffered economically from widowhood, much more than senior men, according to a new study. Senior widows saw their median family adjusted income decline continuously in the five years following the loss of their husband. On the other hand, widowers' median adjusted income was higher five years after the wife's death when compared to the year before that event.
Health Care in Canada 2006: a seventh annual report: CIHI.
June 7, 2006 - Canadians admitted to hospital with a new heart attack are less likely to die in hospital within 30 days than in the past, according to a new report released today by the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI). The short-term (30-day) in-hospital death rate dropped from 13.4% in 1999-2000 to 11.1% in 2004-2005. Patients admitted to hospital with a new stroke were more likely to die within 30 days than those with a heart attack-18.8% died in hospital within 30 days in 2004-2005, a rate that was relatively stable over the preceding five years.
Keeping a Weather Eye Out: Canadian Safe Boating Council.
As a boater, you have fond memories of warm sunny days on the water, enjoying the time and activity with family and friends. Fair skies and fair winds are the desire of every boater but we all know that weather changes and water conditions never remain constant. Boaters must assess the weather and make a decision before heading out on the water and know how to interpret weather changes while on the water.
Forest-fire season: Insurance Bureau of Canada advises B.C. homeowners to check insurance coverage now.
With over 1,000 forest fires so far this season and 71 active fires of note currently burning in British Columbia, the Insurance Bureau of Canada is advising homeowners in the province to check their insurance coverage now, rather than waiting until forest fires are threatening their communities.
Canadian Trucking Alliance Unveils Comprehensive Plan for a Made-in-Canada Clean Air Act
(Ottawa: June 29, 2006) - The Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA), a federation of Canada's provincial trucking associations representing more than 4,500 trucking companies, today unveiled a 14-point action plan to drastically reduce smog and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the freight transportation sector.
Business confidence remains steady in 2nd quarter, 2006: CFIB.
Toronto - June 28, 2006 Results of the latest quarterly survey of small- and medium-sized enterprises, by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) show that business confidence remains steady. The CFIB Quarterly Business Barometer Index stands at 107.2 (1988=100), identical to levels registered in the March index.
Distribution
Designed for Success: The Must-Have Attributes of Producer Tools - Report Published by Celent.
Boston, MA, USA - June 26, 2006 Insurance carriers have to support numerous tools to effectively meet producers' varied needs. They face a monumental task in building tools to support producers. "The problem is that producers are all over the map," says senior analyst Craig Weber, the author. "They agree that they want easy access to data, efficiency, and strong communication from their carriers," Weber says. "But preferences about the tools used to deliver those attributes vary widely."
Advocis Launches New Emerging Regulatory Issues Feature.
June 16, 2006, Victoria, BC - Advocis, The Financial Advisors Association of Canada, today launched the new Emerging Regulatory Issues (ERI) section of the Advocis Best Practices Manual with the introduction of the Product Suitability Principle for Insurance Intermediaries section. The new feature, an industry first, will assist financial advisors to incorporate leading-edge practice standards into their practice without the need to wait until regulation, legislation or directives are issued.
Hub International Buys Insurance Servicing Business.
WOODBRIDGE, ONTARIO, July 11, 2006 - Hub International Limited today announced the acquisition of a life insurance portfolio from Standard International Underwriters Ltd. (SIU). Details of the purchase by the Toronto-based Hub Financial Inc. (HUB Financial) were not disclosed.
Aon Moves to Full Electronic Trading Capability.
LONDON, 22 June 2006 - Aon UK has today announced that it will move to a full electronic trading capability during 2006 for its specialist insurance and reinsurance businesses. In a phased approach, Aon will begin to transition its portfolio of specialist insurance and reinsurance business from physical to electronic distribution in July this year.
Policy and Product Management
EDS SOLCORP Adds Retirement to RADIENCE Family.
22 May 2006 - Las Vegas, NV - EDS SOLCORP today announced the release of RADIENCE: Retirement, the latest in a line of tailored modules built on the RADIENCE: Administration platform. The new offering extends the capabilities of the base solution to help organizations meet their retirement savings and income policy administration needs.
EDS SOLCORP Releases RADIENCE: Consolidation v2.
24 May 2006 - Las Vegas, NV - EDS SOLCORP today announced the release of RADIENCE: Consolidation v2, an advanced, customer-centric business processing platform that allows insurers the ability to effectively manage customer information residing within multiple administration systems, through a common user interface.
eBusiness and Technology
Progressive Receives Top Honors from Keynote Systems
MAYFIELD VILLAGE, Ohio - June 29, 2006 - The Progressive Group of Insurance Companies has been named number one overall by Keynote® Systems, The Internet Performance Authority®, in two comprehensive studies. The group's Web sites, which include progressive.com and progressivedirect.com, were evaluated in the Customer Experience Rankings for Auto Insurance Web Sites and the WebExcellence Q2 2006 Insurance Carrier Scorecard that compare the customer experience and best practices implementation of leading auto insurance Web sites.
Accenture Survey of IT and General Business Executives Identifies Ways for CIOs to Enhance Influence.
NEW YORK - July 5, 2006 - In order for chief information officers (CIO) to wield more influence within their organizations, there must be a greater alignment of the IT function and the business, according to a survey of information technology (IT) executives and general business managers released today by Accenture.
from Doug:
We joined the Warner Family, my Mother's family, reunion on Saturday in a small village north and east of Cornwall in eastern Ontario. Thank goodness for the large buildings in the fairground where we welcomed the protection from two significant cloud bursts during the day. There were new people who had not been to one of the triannual reunions previously, along with the core enthusiasts who never miss one. Our American ancestor Michael had immigrated to Philadelphia from the Palatine about 1740, then moved north into New York Province (now State) and chose the King's side in 1776, having fought previously in the Seven Years (or French Indian) War. After the war he was settled as a Loyalist along the north shore of the St. Lawrence with thousands of other refugees. It was a good weekend for us; it must have been a tough life for Michael.