Issue 2009-26 -- June 30, 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.
Distribution
How CRM has failed insurance: BlueSun.
CRM was introduced as a tool that would improve customer service while increasing sales by maintaining all client data in a single location. The life insurance industry has been slow to adopt CRM, with many well documented project and ROI failures.
Novarica Report On Top Trends in Wealth Management Highlights Key Changes in Client Expectations, Channel Effectiveness, and Role of Technology.
24 June 2009 - NEW YORK - Household assets are down 20% or more, formerly hot products are suddenly unappealing to the market or toxic to the manufacturer, all the major wirehouses have been absorbed by banks, and technology tools are driving customer and distributor acquisition and retention more than ever before. A new report from research and advisory services firm Novarica, Wealth Management Overview 2009: Top Trends in Client Segmentation, Products, and Delivery Channels outlines and explains these new developments and others.
Claims
CDRG Awards More Memberships: ASCO (Hawkesbury ON) and Laurier Restoration (Montreal QC).
Asco Restoration Services Inc. (ARS) has been serving the insurance industry and their clients since 1999 from its head office in Hawkesbury, Ontario. Privately owned and operated, ARS is presently expanding its operations throughout Eastern and Central Ontario.
Laurier Restoration in Montreal was introduced to the Quebec market in 2003. Recognizing a need for a full service restoration company in Quebec, founder, Ian Thomas, returned home with over fourteen years of experience in fire and flood restoration in Western Canada.
HCAI Reintroduction Update.
June 23, 2009 - Remediation of the Health Claims for Auto Insurance (HCAI) system remains on schedule. This update identifies activities and timing of milestone events between now and the end of the program.
eBusiness and Technology
The Protection Insurance Industry and IT - A Mixed Picture of Success, Reports FINEOS.
June 26, 2009 - DUBLIN - FINEOS Corporation, a global provider of innovative enterprise software solutions for insurance, today announced the findings of the Protection Review survey carried out for the Personal Finance Society (PFS) and sponsored by FINEOS. The survey offers a snapshot of the protection market and the results help the life insurance industry develop the right solutions to meet advisers and clients' personal insurance needs. The results of the survey, one of the largest of its type ever conducted, were announced last night at a gala dinner at the Marriott Hotel, Grosvenor Square, London.
Reaping the Benefits of Web 2.0: European Insurers' Strategies that Work: Report Published by Celent.
Zurich, Switzerland - June 17, 2009 - While many people refer to Web 2.0 as a technology, Celent considers it more of an attitude. Web 2.0 combines the need for more mobility, faster information flow, a higher degree of openness, and reliance on collaboration and community.
Managing Relationships - Customer Service
CIGNA International Launches Envoy Web Portal To Help Doctors, Hospitals Better Serve Expatriate Patients.
CLAYMONT, Del., June 15, 2009 - CIGNA International launched the CIGNA Envoy Web Portal to help doctors and hospitals within the CIGNA International network better serve expatriate patients. The portal is a gateway to information for health care professionals worldwide and is the third stage of CIGNA Envoy, a state-of-the-art secure website (www.CIGNAenvoy.com) designed for all those served by CIGNA International.
Consumer Information
Genworth Study Reveals There's No Place Like Home, Right Across Canada.
TORONTO, ON, (June 23, 2009) - The housing market may have experienced some ups and downs this year, but the spirits of potential first-time homebuyers across Canada remain strong. According to Genworth Financial Canada's First-Time Homebuyer's Monitor released today, 84 per cent of those surveyed said that owning a home goes beyond its financial value and feel that homeownership pays off in more ways than one.
Improvements in prevention and cardiac care mean fewer heart attacks and fewer deaths: CIHI.
June 11, 2009 - A new report tracking selected indicators of health system performance over 10 years in Canada shows significant improvements in the prevention and management of heart disease, with fewer Canadians having a heart attack, one of the leading causes of death in this country. Data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) shows the rate of patients admitted to hospital for heart attack in Canada (outside Quebec) dropped 13% between 2003–2004 and 2007–2008, after population growth and aging were taken into account.
Traffic Injury Research Foundation Responds to Federal Justice Committee Report.
OTTAWA, June 22 2009 - The Traffic Injury Research Foundation (TIRF) supports many of the recommendations made in the June 18th report of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights. The recommendation to maintain the current Criminal Code of Canada Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) limit of 0.08 is prudent in light of recent research illustrating that the justice system is having difficulty coping with the existing volume of impaired driving cases.
Marketing and the Market Place
Looking into the Future of Digital Marketing: eMarketer.
JUNE 23, 2009 - IThe Future of Digital Marketing conference, presented by Econsultancy, is an annual fixture on the London marketing calendar. This year's gathering again boasted a number of stimulating presentations, as well as heated discussion.
Reference and Statistics
MIB Life Index Reports North American Life Insurance Activity off 2.5% in May.
Braintree, MA. – (June 10, 2009) North American application activity for individually underwritten life insurance was off in -2.5% May year-over-year, according to the MIB Life Index. Canadian application activity overall remained slightly positive in May, up +0.5% year-over-year, all ages combined.
Business of Insurance
Majority of Insurers Plan to Expand Internationally in Next 12 Months, Accenture Survey Finds
LONDON; June 10, 2009 = Despite the turmoil in the global economy, nearly two-thirds (62 percent) of insurers plan to grow outside of their home market in the next 12 months, according to findings of a global survey released today by Accenture.
Surety Industry Weathering Economic Storm, Says Aon.
LOS ANGELES, June 18, 2009 - Aon Corporation (NYSE: AOC), the leading global provider of risk management services, announced today the release of its Surety Marketplace Update. The overview reports that, although the surety industry has demonstrated stable loss results since the first quarter of 2006, the overall financial impact of the credit crunch – including rating agency downgrades and bankruptcies – will likely impact surety providers in 2009.
Government Involvement in Terror Insurance Programs Continues to Increase, According to Guy Carpenter.
New York, June 22, 2009 - A report on the global terror insurance market, published today by Guy Carpenter & Company, LLC, finds that governments are becoming increasingly involved in the development of insurance programs focusing on terror coverage and terror pools, though a number of nations continue to offer no government support at all.
from Doug:
A time to reflect, a time to celebrate, Canada Day - although my heritage nature still prefers Dominion Day. To me the latter better represents the stewardship responsibility that we as people, as human beings, have been given for this space, with political boundaries, in which we live. As we celebrate and think about next week, next year and even the next century, our children and theirs, let's continue our successes and fix our failures. After all, it is our country and it will be what we make of it. Enjoy!