Insurable Interest Canadian Insurance Blog

IBM is announcing a significant milestone in our strategy to help enterprises modernize mainframe applications, bringing new levels of efficiency, productivity and intelligence to the IBM Z application development lifecycle — By Michael Kwok, Vice President, IBM Bob; Canada Lab Director — IBM Z is a family of enterprise-grade mainframe computer servers designed by IBM. Known for their legendary reliability (the “Z” originally stands for “zero downtime”), they are the backbone of the global economy, processing roughly 70% of all financial transactions worldwide. These modern compute stacks are built for massive-scale, mission-critical operations where failure is not an option. — We are excited to introduce IBM Bob Premium Package for Z, which integrates and enhances the capabilities of IBM watsonx Code Assistant for Z to deliver advanced features for enterprise-scale mainframe applications. IBM Bob Premium Package for Z is currently available in private preview. AI-powered tool for enterprise developers Modern developers expect a cutting-edge, agentic integrated development environment (IDE) experience and teams working on IBM Z applications can experience that with IBM Bob. IBM Bob is an AI-powered development tool for enterprise developers that can plan, execute, validate and govern multi-step modernization tasks across the software development lifecycle (SDLC). It...

App in ChatGPT allows users to get an accurate auto insurance quote in minutes Boston, MA (May 28, 2026) – Liberty Mutual Insurance, the seventh-largest auto insurer in the US, has launched a first-of-its-kind carrier-backed conversational AI auto insurance quoting application. The app allows ChatGPT users to obtain an auto insurance quote from Liberty Mutual in minutes through a conversational, chat-based interaction, rather than a traditional online form. Quotes are now available via the app in ChatGPT for drivers in seven states (Arizona, Kentucky, Ohio, Missouri, New Mexico, Utah and Wisconsin), and Liberty Mutual plans to offer conversational AI quoting in more than 40 states by the end of the year. “We are excited to extend access to our products and provide additional platforms for customers to find great coverage at a great price. Consumers have more choice than ever in how they choose to shop, including emerging channels like conversational AI and large language model (LLM) platforms,” said Tyler Asher, Liberty Mutual Chief Distribution and Marketing Officer, US Retail Markets. “As this shopping process continues to evolve, it’s beneficial to customers that we meet them wherever they are, leveraging the newest technology to simplify the buying experience and deliver...

Hannah Handles 100% of Inbound Service Calls and Achieved 97% Customer Satisfaction Since Launch San Jose, CA (May 28, 2026) – Hippo is pleased to announce it is scaling Hannah, its AI-powered service representative, the latest step in Hippo’s multi-year investment in technology to improve the customer experience, drive operational efficiency, and support profitable growth. So far in 2026, Hannah has handled more than 28,000 service calls, replacing interactive voice response (IVR) menus with a natural, conversational AI concierge that greets every Hippo customer, authenticates them, answers questions, and seamlessly transfers them to a licensed agent whenever necessary. “Hannah isn’t a chatbot, she’s a digital member of our service team,” said Kyle Ramsay, Hippo’s Chief Product and Artificial Intelligence Officer. “Built with Hippo’s modern APIs, real-time data, and the latest AI models, Hannah can serve a growing range of customer needs. Alongside Clara in claims, Hannah reflects our broader strategy to apply AI agents across the insurance lifecycle to efficiently deliver seamless customer experiences.” AI-Powered Service: Always On, Always Intelligent Hannah now triages 100% of inbound customer service calls, authenticates callers, and intelligently routes requests before a human agent is ever involved. Using natural language understanding, customers can speak conversationally...

New offering gives private equity firms portfolio-level visibility into cyber risk, enabling CISOs and operating partners to manage aggregate exposure across investments from acquisition through exit  San Francisco, CA (June 3, 2026) – Today, leading cyber risk solutions company Resilience announced the launch of its Private Equity Cyber Risk Program, a new offering designed to help private equity (PE) firms manage cyber exposure across their portfolios. It connects Arc, Resilience’s cyber risk management platform for complex organizations, with bespoke insurance endorsements through carrier partners to address structural coverage gaps across the investment lifecycle. Private equity firms operate in a fundamentally different risk environment than traditional enterprises. Security leaders are responsible for dozens of portfolio companies, each with distinct systems, controls, and reporting structures. Some report directly to the PE firm while others sit beneath additional parent entities that further obscure oversight. As firms scale through acquisitions, divestitures, and shared infrastructure, that risk becomes increasingly concentrated and interconnected. Yet most still rely on fragmented, point-in-time assessments at the individual company level, with little to no regular flow of security data back to the firm. In a constantly evolving threat landscape, this visibility gap is where exposure compounds–the distance between what was...

Toronto, ON (May 25, 2026) – As temperatures rise and projects accelerate, Canada’s construction sector is entering its busiest period of the year. Often referred to as “crane season,” the summer months typically see a surge in development activity across residential, commercial, and infrastructure projects, particularly in urban centres. “With tighter timelines, increased labour demand, and higher project values, this seasonal spike not only drives economic momentum but also introduces a more complex risk environment for contractors, developers, and project stakeholders”, mentioned Gary Hirst, CEO, CHES Special Risk. Seasonal Growth Meets Operational Pressure The summer construction period is characterized by accelerated project schedules and overlapping workstreams. Builders aim to maximize favourable weather conditions, resulting in increased site activity, longer work hours, and greater coordination between multiple trades. This heightened pace can amplify common construction risks, including: Equipment damage or breakdown during high‑usage periods Site congestion leading to accidents or third‑party liability exposures Material handling and storage challenges Delays or disruptions impacting project timelines and costs In this environment, both physical damage risks and liability exposures tend to become more pronounced. Specialty insurance providers with dedicated construction expertise play a key role during this period, supporting brokers with tailored underwriting approaches...

Tronto, ON (May 21, 2022) — The Canadian Association of Managing General Agents (CAMGA) has published a new white paper, White Paper on Recommended Provincial Regulatory Standards for Property and Casualty Managing General Agents, authored by respected insurance industry expert Patrick Ballantyne. The white paper is available in both English and French and represents a significant milestone in CAMGA’s ongoing work to advance a clear, consistent, and fit-for-purpose regulatory framework for property and casualty (P&C) Managing General Agents (MGAs) across Canada. View the whitepaper here. In December 2025, CAMGA announced the appointment of Ballantyne as a consultant to support the association’s work on MGA-specific regulatory matters. He was tasked with examining the current regulatory environment for P&C MGAs in Canada and developing recommendations to inform CAMGA’s discussions with provincial regulators and industry stakeholders. “MGAs play an increasingly important role in the Canadian insurance marketplace, yet regulation has not evolved in a consistent way to reflect the unique nature of the business model,” said Ballantyne. “This paper provides practical recommendations to strengthen consumer protection, improve regulatory efficiency, and better align oversight with the operational realities of MGAs.” Key Highlights of the White Paper The paper concludes that: MGAs are a distinct...