Issue 2009-10 -- March 10, 2009
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.
eBusiness and Technology
DMTI Spatial Unlocks Business Value Inherent in Location Risk Management with the Introduction of its New Risk & Profit Location Content Cartridge (LCC).
Markham, ON Canada - February 18, 2009. DMTI Spatial (DMTI), Canada's leading provider of Location Intelligence solutions, has introduced the second of its six innovative Location Content Cartridges (LCC) designed to address specific industry business needs. The Risk & Profit LCC is a comprehensive solution providing next generation content for expanding risk analysis undertaken in mortgage and property & casualty insurance.
Gomez's New Instant Test Reveals How Websites Perform from the Customers' Perspective.
Lexington, Massachusetts, February 9, 2009 - Understanding how websites perform for users around the world is now as simple as typing in a URL, thanks to the new, free Instant Test Site from Gomez, Inc., a leading provider of web application experience management services.
Marketing and the Market Place
IBM sheds new light on the smart energy consumer.
ARMONK, NY - 25 Feb 2009: IBM Global Business Services today unveiled its new report, "Lighting the Way: Understanding the smart energy consumer," that shows consumers around the globe are willing to become more involved with managing their energy use.
Online retail e-commerce will sink before it soars again: eMarketer.
MARCH 5, 2009 - eMarketer is now forecasting that US retail e-commerce sales (excluding travel) will contract by 0.4% in 2009, falling to $133 billion. But - and here is the good news - as the economy improves, online sales will return to the double-digit growth rates seen prior to 2008.
Claims
HCAI Remediation Update.
February 3, 2009 - The Health Claims for Auto Insurance system (HCAI) is now in the remediation process. To get to this point, we consulted with both insurers and provider facilities to understand the business impacts which were experienced. A third party review was also commissioned to identify the elements which affected the behaviour of the system and these will be the focus of the remediation process.
EagleView and Xactware team up to revolutionize roof dimensioning.
Woodinville, WA and Orem, UT - March 2, 2009 - EagleView Technologies and Xactware Solutions, Inc., are teaming up to offer insurance adjusters, contractors, and roofers a streamlined method to quickly generate sketched roofs.
Distribution
Western Financial Group Announces Acquisition of Leading Vancouver Island Broker.
High River, Alberta – March 2, 2009 – Western Financial Group announced today that it has closed on the acquisition of Bakes-Jarvie Insurance Brokers Ltd. in Nanaimo, BC effective January 1, 2009.
RBC Insurance partners with Royal Canadian Golf Association.
MISSISSAUGA, ON, March 4 2009 - RBC Insurance today announced that it has entered into an exclusive agreement with the Royal Canadian Golf Association (RCGA) to offer a group home and auto insurance program, specifically designed for golfers, to the association's 332,000 adult members.
Voluntary sales will still grow despite the current economy according to Eastbridge's Confidence Index survey.
AVON, CONNECTICUT, USA (February 24, 2009) - Two-thirds of survey respondents in Eastbridge Consulting Group's Voluntary Industry Confidence Index survey (year-end 2008) expect sales to increase in 2009 (as compared to 2008). This percentage (those expecting an increase over the next 12 months) is down from 82 percent at mid-year 2008 and 89 percent at year-end 2007.
Product Announcements
Right Choice Insurance launches online critical illness solution.
TORONTO, March 4 2009 - 61 per cent of Canadians admit they have no plan ready in the event they are diagnosed with a critical illness, reveals a recent survey of more than 1,600 Canadians by Ottawa-based polling firm, Redfern Research.
Business of Insurance
Positioning Businesses for Future as More Independently Operated Companies: AIG.
NEW YORK--Mar. 2, 2009 -- American International Group, Inc. (AIG) today announced that it intends to form a General Insurance holding company, including its Commercial Insurance Group, Foreign General unit, and other property and casualty operations, to be called AIU Holdings, Inc., with a board of directors, management team and brand distinct from AIG.
Consumer Information
Ontario Government Offers Tips For Safe & Smart Riding.
TORONTO, Feb. 27 2009 - Before heading out on the trails during March Break, snowmobile riders should make sure their selected route is safe for riding. Ontario is home to 43,000 kilometres of maintained, interconnected snowmobile trails - the most extensive network of recreational trails in the world.
ICBC claims card to help customers.
February 18, 2009 - Experiencing a crash can be frightening and stressful to say the very least, so ICBC and its Autoplan brokers have teamed up to distribute a claims card - titled At the scene of a crash - to help customers remember all the vital information they need to gather in order to make a claim.
85% of Canadians Say Their Eating Habits Need Some Improvement: Ipsos Reid Poll.
February 25, 2009 Toronto, ON - A new Ipsos Reid poll conducted on behalf of Dietitians of Canada has revealed that many Canadians admit to needing improvement when it comes to their eating habits. Eighty-five percent 'agree' (27% strongly/58% somewhat) that their eating habits could use 'some improvement' and fully one half (50%) of Canadians 'agree' (17% strongly/33% somewhat) that their eating habits need a 'lot of improvement'.
Most Identity Fraud Cases Begin Because of a Lost or Stolen Wallet: I.I.I..
NEW YORK, February 23, 2009 - Low tech crimes such as a stolen wallet or purse can put into motion the high tech crime of identity theft, according to the Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.).
from Doug:
Our basement is too small. We have been accummulating here for over thirty years. We have been spending part of this winter repainting the interior of our house, or rather sorting and moving so that someone else can do the painting. As we move things out of one room, they are being discarded, moved to the next room to be returned after painting, or moved to the basement because we can't decide to keep or not. The basement is shrinking.