Monday’s a holiday for most of us in Canada (check out this video to find out why) which means it’s the second long weekend of the summer! It means festivals and outdoor concerts, camping and canoeing and relaxing – ah yes, the relaxing. It also means that we won’t be in on Monday, which means [...]
Canada’s richest provinces saw the smallest increases in household net worth last year, as real estate values in some of the country’s major markets declined. British Columbia and Alberta posted the smallest increases in net worth by far, with gains of 2.8 per cent and 2.5 per cent respectively, according to a survey by WealthScapes [...]
Summer: long weekends, longer days, BBQs and road trips. They all go hand-in-hand. ICBC has issued a tip list for safe summer road trips. The provincial insurer says that in British Columbia, in July and August, over the years 2005 to 2009, there is an average of 1,232 crashes and 361 injured victims on B.C. [...]
Reinsurer and capital advisor Aon Benfield has launched ImpactOnDemand, a new generation of its risk management tools which allow insurers to visualize, quantify and connect their exposures to catastrophic events. Insurers can upload their most current portfolios for viewing and analysis at any time. ImpactOnDemand combines the functionality of Aon Benfield’s ExposureView and CatPortal solutions [...]
Banking titan Citigroup Inc. is paying US$75 million to settle civil charges that it misled investors about its potential losses from subprime mortgages as the housing bust hit in 2007. The Securities and Exchange Commission announced the settlement with Citigroup on Thursday. It says the company repeatedly made misleading statements in calls with analysts and [...]
Irish budget airline Ryanair reported a 24 per cent drop in first-quarter net profit, citing C50 million (US$65 million) in lost business from the Icelandic volcano as well as a rising fuel bill – but the carrier says it remains poised to keep expanding. Net profit for the April-June quarter fell to C93.7 million ($121.8 [...]
On Wednesday, July 28, an Airbus A321 jet crashed near the Pakistan capital of Islamabad. The jet, carrying 152 passengers and crew, was en route from Karachi, Pakistan to Islamabad. All on board were killed. Business Insurance magazine is reporting that Bermuda-based Catlin confirmed that it is the lead underwriter, but the source could not [...]
The Ontario government has introduced new changes that it says will make the province’s roads safer. The changes mostly apply to young drivers and those in the Graduated Licensing System. Starting August 1: All drivers 21 years of age and younger must have a zero blood alcohol level when they get behind the wheel or [...]
The Co-operators recently received three awards at the 52nd annual Insurance Marketing & Communications Association (IMCA) 2010 Showcase Awards, held June 27-30 in Atlanta, Georgia. The organization won a Best of Show Award in the category of Print Product or Image Advertising – In-House B2C Marketing for its RESP printed marketing material. It also earned [...]
Homeowners are in the best shape when it comes to financial fitness in Canada. Sixty five per cent of homeowners pay off their credit card balances each month (vs. 48 per cent of non-homeowners). Furthermore, a quarter of those homeowners with mortgages have managed to make a lump sum payment or accelerate their mortgage payments [...]
Marsh has unveiled a new real-time, on-demand benchmark reporting service, available for clients and prospect. Marsh says the service compliments the industry environment as risk managers strive to maintain effective and competitively-priced insurance programs. Available through Marsh’s Global Benchmarking Portal, the service provides clients with real-time benchmarking analytics on purchasing and pricing trends in the [...]
Eurotunnel SA reported a C45 million (US$58.5 million) loss in the first half of this year because of delayed insurance payouts from a 2008 fire in the tunnel it operates beneath the English Channel. The undersea tunnel operator said it may not make a profit this year if the payouts remain blocked. Eurotunnel reported an [...]
Manitoba Public Insurance has announced that a government-authorized vehicle safety inspection will increase by $10, bringing the cost up to $55. The increase, effective on August 1, applies to safety inspections for cars, motorcycles and light trucks. “This is the first increase in nine years,” Ward Keith, Registrar of Motor Vehicles, Manitoba Public Insurance, said [...]
Willis Group Holdings has issued a statement in response to the announcement by Aon Corporation that it would resume accepting contingent commissions “where appropriate and legally permissible” The full and unedited response from Willis is as follows: With Aon retreating to a troublesome and ambiguous position on contingent commissions, Willis now stands as the world’s [...]
In March, a massive fire destroyed a Calgary condominium complex, leaving at least 250 occupants homeless. The combustive culprit was a cigarette in a planter outside the complex. Recently there has been a spike in fires sparked by smoking materials in potting soil. The Co-operators is urging Canadians to be aware of the danger associated [...]
Seven of 91 European banks failed stress tests aimed at measuring their strength in case the continent’s government debt crisis takes a turn for the worse, regulators said on July 23. European Union officials hope the results will reassure markets worried about hidden bank losses from the crisis. The EU said the tests were tough [...]
