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.
Update on "Business Intelligence" Conference on March 5.
A panel discussion "Standards for Consistent, Accurate, and Timely Information" with moderator Jim McGregor, CEO, The Precept Group has been added to the agenda. Panelists include Kevin Campbell, CEO, of Policy Works and Mark Orlandi, Program Director, Property & Casualty/Surety, ACORD. More information on the conference.
Business of Insurance
Kingsway Announces Acquisition of Renewal And Certain Processing Operations of The Robert Plan Corporation.
Toronto, Ontario (January 18, 2007) Kingsway Financial Services Inc. announced today that it had entered into an agreement with The Robert Plan Corporation whereby Kingsway has acquired the renewal rights of RPC's assigned risk business. As part of these arrangements, RPC has been given the authority to market the assigned risk programs on behalf of Kingsway, and Kingsway has assumed certain operating functions related to this business.
Lloyd's: Insurers must tackle climate change.
Washington, DC - January 12, 2007 - Insurers must address global climate change as they cope with the growing cost of extreme natural disasters, said Lord Peter Levene, chairman of Lloyd's, the London insurance market. "We cannot risk being in denial on catastrophe trends," Levene said today in a speech to the World Affairs Council at the National Press Club. "We urgently need a radical rethink of public policy, and to build the facts into future planning."
Swiss Re: Global Risks 2007 report highlights new ways to address global risks.
10 Jan 2007 CET - The Global Risks 2007 report released today highlights a growing disconnect between the power of global risks to cause major systemic disruption, and our ability to mitigate them. The annual Global Risks report - published by the World Economic Forum in cooperation with Citigroup, Marsh & McLennan Companies, Swiss Re and the Wharton School Risk Center - suggests that many of the 23 core global risks explored in the report have worsened over the last 12 months, despite growing awareness of their potential impacts.
Insurance industry vital to meeting forecast demand for reliable energy supplies, Aon tells United Nations hearing.
LONDON, 17 January 2007 - Members of the United Nations (UN) Committee on Sustainable Energy have heard the valuable role the insurance industry will play in enhancing safety standards at energy companies and supporting the continued supply of energy globally during times of crises.
Claims
Audatex Announces Autosource Plus.
SAN RAMON, Calif., Jan. 16 2007 -- Audatex, a Solera company, the global leader in automotive claims processing, announced today the release of Autosource Plus, the company's new total loss valuation product designed to speed the settlement of total loss claims and to improve customer satisfaction.
Insurance in the Community
Standard Life donates $220,000 to Centraide of Greater Montreal.
MONTREAL, Jan. 18, 2007 - Mr. Joseph Iannicelli, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Standard Life Assurance Company of Canada, recently presented a cheque in the amount of $220,000 to Ms. Michèle Thibodeau-DeGuire, President and Executive Director of Centraide of Greater Montreal.
Marketing and the Market Place
eMarketer: Bigger Sites May Not Be Better for Online Advertisers.
JANUARY 16, 2007 - In the glory days of television, when mass media reigned, media planners could buy time on CBS, NBC and ABC and waltz out for a three-martini lunch. Easy as that. Times have changed, of course. Today, planning multimedia advertising campaigns is far more complex. But media planners would still prefer to keep things as simple as possible.
CFIB Release: Gap between public and private sector retirement and pensions widening.
January 17, 2007 - Toronto - There is a widening gap between Canada's public and private sectors in terms of retirement trends and pension plans, according to a new position paper, titled Canada's Pension Predicament, released today by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB). "We are on our way to a two-tier retirement system," said CFIB president Catherine Swift.
StatsCan Study: Depression and work impairment.
Friday, January 12, 2007 -- Around half a million Canadian workers experience depression and most of them say the symptoms interfere with their ability to work, according to a new study. Data from the 2002 Canadian Community Health Survey, which focused on mental health and well-being, show that almost 4% of workers aged 25 to 64 had experienced depression in the 12 months before the survey.
Progressive Launches Web Site for Supercross Fans.
MAYFIELD VILLAGE , Ohio - Jan. 11, 2007 - The Progressive Group of Insurance Companies, the nation's largest motorcycle and third largest car insurance group, today announced the introduction of HoleshotHeaven.com - a new Web site for the millions of Supercross racing enthusiasts across the country.
eBusiness and Technology
IBM confirms 15 years of technological advancement for MDI and $4 billion in potential savings.
Laval on January 13 2007, MDI is proud to take note that IBM analysts describe the «C-surance.ca Suite» as the ideal business model with which the insurance industry could renew themselves. The model insures reduced operating costs that benefit the consumers.
Education
New Edition of LOMA Underwriting Text Available in Electronic and Printed Formats.
ATLANTA, Georgia - January 12, 2007-LOMA has released a new edition of Life and Health Insurance Underwriting. The revised textbook, which is also available to LOMA students for the first time in downloadable PDF format, introduces risk assessment principles applied to underwriting individual and group life and health insurance and provides a thorough introduction to underwriting terminology and concepts. The text is assigned reading for LOMA's underwriting course, UND 386.
Managers Say the Majority of Information Obtained for Their Work Is Useless, Accenture Survey Finds.
NEW YORK and LONDON - Jan. 4, 2007 - Middle managers spend more than a quarter of their time searching for information necessary to their jobs, and when they do find it, it is often wrong, according to results of an Accenture (NYSE: ACN) survey released today. The purpose of the online survey of more than 1,000 middle managers of large companies in the United States and United Kingdom was to uncover wide-ranging insights about the way they gather, use and analyze information.
Policy and Product Management
EDS SOLCORP Unveils Latest INGENIUM® Release: Delivers enhancements to help insurers meet tax and regulatory requirements.
TORONTO, Ontario - EDS SOLCORP today announced the general availability of INGENIUM® v7.0, the latest release of its high performance, web services enabled policy life cycle administration system for the life insurance industry.
Product Announcements
Unifund Assurance and Johnson Inc. offer two new benefits.
Unifund Assurance Company and Johnson Inc. have announced two new benefits -- Personal Internet and Identity Theft Coverage, and Legal Assistance.
Marsh Canada Adds CarriersEdge To Affinity Program.
MARKHAM, ON - January 16, 2007 - CarriersEdge®, the leading provider of online driver quality programs, and Marsh Canada, the Canadian arm of the world's leading risk and insurance services firm, today announced that they have entered into a multi-year, national agreement that will offer the CarriersEdge driver development system to all Marsh customers as part of the Marsh Affinity Program.
from Doug:
Winter has finally arrived in the Toronto area, thank goodness. I really enjoy the crisp sunny days, when the back of our house which faces south warms up nicely. My office is there, at the opposite end of the house from the furnace. Cold and cloudy days, especially if an east wind blows, have me reaching for the blanket. Oh well, only five more months and I will be able to complain about the heat. Must have Canadian and farmer's blood in me! Like your ancestors, you get what you get, so might as well celebrate it.