Insurable Interest Canadian Insurance Blog

Average year-over-year and quarter-over-quarter renewal rates decreased across the most commonly placed commercial lines of business Chicago, IL (May 5, 2026) – Applied Systems® is pleased to announce the first quarter 2026 results of the Applied Commercial Index™, the Canadian insurance industry’s premium rate index. Overall, the magnitude of rate increases was down across all lines relative to average premium renewals in the same quarter last year with 1.67% in Q1 2026 down from 3.85% in Q1 2025. To that end, rate increases across all lines of business were down compared to the same quarter last year. Quarter over quarter, Q1 2026 results showed average renewal rate increases were down across all lines of the most commonly placed Commercial Lines categories, including Real Estate Property, Construction, Hospitality Services, and Retail Services, except Business and Professional Services which demonstrated a rate increase. Significant findings include: Business and Professional Services: Q1 2026 premium renewal rate change average was 2.43%, up from the Q4 2025 average of 1.83%. Construction, Erection, and Installation Services: Premium renewal rate change average was 1.56% for the quarter, down from the Q4 2025 average of 2.52%. Hospitality Services: Q1 2026 premium renewal rate change average was 0.43%, down from...

IBM Launches Global AI Builders Challenge With IBM Bob for University Students, Expanding Availability of IBM Bob to 20,000 Post-Secondary Institutions Worldwide New global challenge provides university students hands-on experience with IBM Bob, helping them build practical AI skills, portfolio-ready projects and career connections New York, NY (June 3, 2026) – IBM is pleased to announce the AI Builders Challenge, a global challenge with IBM Bob – IBM’s new AI-powered development partner – that will help university students build practical AI and software development skills for the future of work. The Challenge comes as employers increasingly expect graduates to know how to use AI, yet many students lack opportunities to practice those skills before entering the workforce. A recent survey from the American Association of Colleges and Universities and Elon University found that 63 percent of faculty said graduates were not very or not at all prepared to use generative AI in the world of work. The AI Builders Challenge is intended to help address that gap by giving students practice with AI in a setting where their work has to be tested, explained and improved. Announced during IBM’s Future of AI in Higher Education Summit in New York City, the...

Belleville, ON (June 10, 2026) – Rising temperatures. Severe flooding. More intense hurricanes. Bitterly cold winters. Droughts and destructive wildfires. These kinds of incidents seem to be happening more frequently. Even most former climate change skeptics now acknowledge the world is becoming warmer. 2023 was the hottest year on record, and 2016 was the second-hottest. Sea levels are rising because of melting polar ice sheets, and the frequency and severity of destructive weather continue to increase. In the past 50 years, the number of natural disasters worldwide has risen more than 450%. The rising sea level is affecting coastal areas all over the world. When the sea level rises, it’s not just those below the new high tide line who have to worry. Rising seas mean more potential flood events. Tidal flooding and storm surges become even more likely for low-lying coastal areas. Climate volatility and your home Many factors can affect your homeowners insurance rates, including weather patterns where you live. Your insurer considers the odds of your property sustaining damage when calculating your premium. Climate change means those odds are getting worse. Higher premiums Because of increasingly severe weather events, insurance companies will inevitably incur more losses and...

Google Cloud is launching AI Threat Defense, helping customers to protect themselves with agent-driven, machine-speed defense Deloitte is collaborating with Google Cloud to implement the AI Threat Defense solution and can help clients build custom AI agents using Google’s advanced Gemini models and Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform New York, NY (June 3, 2026) – Deloitte is pleased to announce an expansion of its strategic alliance with Google Cloud and Wiz. By integrating Google Cloud’s AI Threat Defense solution with its Continuous Threat Exposure Management (CTEM) platform, Deloitte is delivering a consolidated solution for broad visibility and streamlined governance. Through this integrated offering, Deloitte is helping to deliver Google AI Threat Defense, which fuses the reasoning power of Gemini and other frontier models, the contextual risk prioritization of Wiz, the code remediation capabilities of Gemini and CodeMender and the frontline experience of Mandiant. Combined with Deloitte’s CTEM platform and deep technical experience in building business-context-aware AI agents, together these organizations are helping clients adopt new agentic workflows that improve cyber defenses. Why this matters Novel frontier AI models are discovering vulnerabilities at rates that are challenging for cyber teams to remediate before they are exploited. Additionally, cybersecurity programs can be burdened by...

Calgary, AB (June 24, 2026) – Modular Solutions, a leading SaaS provider of enterprise policy administration technology, is pleased to announce that Navacord Underwriting Solutions (NUS), has selected Modular Solutions as its MGA policy administration system. The decision marks a significant milestone in Navacord’s technology strategy to bring its multiple managing general agencies (MGAs) onto a single enterprise-grade platform. This will enable unified operations, accelerated product innovation, and long-term scalability. As part of Navacord, one of Canada’s largest multi-line insurance brokerages and financial services firms, NUS operates as a dedicated underwriting and MGA platform, supporting multiple specialized MGAs across the country. With an emphasis on efficiency and integration, the Modular Solutions platform connects seamlessly with third-party data providers, payment processors, and other systems while providing automation and AI to drastically improve workflows and data quality. Modular Solutions’ approach allows customers to scale confidently and leverage innovative technology, optimizing digital experiences without sacrificing governance, security, or performance. Navacord’s underwriting operations span multiple MGAs and support a national network of more than 1,000 retail broker partners. NUS selected Modular Solutions to address clear strategic needs and align on a shared vision for how modern MGA organizations operate at scale. Key factors included:...