Insurable Interest Canadian Insurance Blog

Commercial Property offering expands to include access to Legal Assistance services, Legal Expense Insurance for select policyholders Toronto, ON (Nov. 29, 2023) – Echelon Insurance, a leading Canadian Specialty insurer, and a member of the CAA Club Group family, is now providing its Commercial Property customers with on-demand access to Legal Assistance services and select policyholders with Legal Expense Insurance for unexpected legal events. The insurer has partnered with Toronto-based ARAG Legal Solutions Inc., part of the ARAG Group, the global leader in legal expense insurance (LEI) with over 85 years of experience in and currently active in 19 countries – including Canada, the USA, and Australia. “We understand that legal challenges can significantly impact a company’s operations and bottom line, and our goal is to address those risks proactively,” said Jamal Madbak, Vice President of Commercial Lines, Echelon Insurance. “We are pleased to expand our Commercial Property insurance offering and reinforce our commitment to helping protect Canadian businesses from all angles.” Echelon Commercial Property policyholders have unlimited access to a general legal helpline, through which they will receive confidential general legal assistance and information over the phone relating to any legal problem affecting their business. Policyholders will also have...

Swiss Re Institute sigma 6/2023 – Risks on the rise as headwinds blow stronger Total premium growth is forecast at 2.2% annually on average for the next two years, higher than the average of the past five years (2018–2022: 1.6%) With investment returns increasing and hard market conditions continuing, the insurance industry further improves profitability Geopolitics take dominant role in driving economic environment with global real GDP growth at 2.2% for 2024, down from a 2.6% estimate for 2023, before a revival to 2.7% in 2025 Inflation and interest rates in developed markets expected to stay higher in the next decade with global inflation forecast to moderate to 5.1% in 2024 and 3.4% in 2025 Armonk, NY (Nov. 21, 2023) – After a resilient 2023 powered by strong US economic growth, the world economy is expected to slow by 0.4 ppts. to 2.2% real GDP growth in 2024. Major economies are diverging with the US continuing to grow, Europe stagnating and China grappling with structural domestic growth challenges. The conflict in the Middle East is heightening risks to the macroeconomic outlook. According to the latest sigma report, the global insurance industry’s strengthening financial position offers welcome reinforcement against elevated macroeconomic...

35% of Canadian business leaders say they operate in a high-risk environment, up from 20% last year 12% of business leaders said they are less resilient to risks impacting their business than a year ago, rising to almost a third (32%) for business interruption risks specifically 29% of Canadian firms feel unprepared to deal with climate risks and disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence Toronto, ON (Nov. 21, 2023) – Beazley, the leading specialty insurer, has published published its first Canada Snapshot report – Risk & Resilience in a Time of Change. The report based on Beazley’s 2023 Risk & Resilience research shows how Canadian business leaders’ perceptions of business risks in areas such as cyber, technology, and ESG are changing rapidly. As firms across Canada find themselves exposed to an increasingly challenging macroeconomic backdrop driven by high interest rates, 35% of Canadian business leaders say they operate in a high-risk environment, increasing from 20% in 2022. This perception is set to rise to 37% in 2024 as recessionary fears have grown among the G7 country’s leading economists. New challenges emerge for Canada’s business leaders In an increasingly uncertain business environment, firms in Canada are grappling with a new set...

Start Slideshow U.S. consumer demand for live, hands-on financial advisors continues to grow despite voluminous data and technology designed to empower individuals to handle their own investments, says new research from Cerulli Associates and the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association. The “advised” investor segment has grown to 47% now from 35% in 2009, while the group  classifying themselves as “self-directed” has fallen to 24% from 41%, according to the research. At the same time, 63% of investors indicate a willingness to pay for advice, compared with 38% in 2009, Cerulli noted. Interest in formal financial plans has increased to 54% from 38% in the same 14-year stretch, the research found. “Investors seek advisors with a service set aligned with their financial goals,” Scott Smith, advice relationships director at Cerulli, said in a statement. “Looking forward, we believe demand will be centered around personalized comprehensive advice delivered through trusted advisors.” Kenneth E. Bentsen, Jr. SIFMA president and CEO, added: “The data clearly indicates that Investors are increasingly choosing professional advice and recognize the value to navigate complicated choices. Trustworthiness and quality of service comprise the foundation of client satisfaction.” Among the big takeaways, Cerulli and SIMFA found: “Advised clients want to know that someone is...

New data shines a light on the affordability crisis in Canada; vast majority of Canadians say the Canadian economy is on the brink of a recession, if not already in one Toronto, ON (Nov. 22, 2023) – Manulife Bank has released its semi-annual Financial Healthy Survey, finding that the Canadian economy, which has been in a period of volatility and uncertainty for the last 18 months with soaring inflation, record cost of living, and a near fivefold increase in interest rates has, continues to affect Canadians. According to the results, 86 per cent of Canadians are concerned about the direction of the Canadian economy and a vast majority (84 per cent) think we’re either already in a recession or heading into one within the next year (73 per cent). It’s also becoming clear that things are hitting close to home for Canadians: almost 90 per cent are concerned about the affordability of life in Canada and 70 per cent are worried about their overall financial health and wellness. “We’ve been in a period of economic volatility for a number of months and that it is not likely to change any time soon,” says Alex Lucas, President, Manulife Bank. “Despite slowing...

New York, NY (Nov. 21, 2023) – Marsh McLennan and its business Oliver Wyman, a global leader in management consulting, are pleased to announce the launch of a new Generative AI tool for colleagues. The tool, called LenAI, was developed by Marsh McLennan’s Dublin Innovation Center in collaboration with Oliver Wyman Digital and is available to Marsh McLennan’s more than 85,000 colleagues worldwide. “We have some of the brightest minds in business working across our four businesses and a collaborative culture,” said Paul Beswick, Senior Vice President and Global Chief Information Officer, Marsh McLennan. “When it came time to introduce the tool, we were able to deploy it quickly and securely. Since its full launch recently, LenAI has been a game changer for our teams, enabling them to work smarter for the benefit of our clients.” “We know AI has the potential to help our clients increase their productivity, transform complex and expensive processes, and do other things that were out of practical reach until now,” added Vivek Sen, Partner, Head of Digital, Oliver Wyman, Americas. “We’ve always been at the forefront of helping our clients leverage the latest technologies even within highly regulated industries, and AI is no different.”...