Insurable Interest Canadian Insurance Blog

Globe and Mail‘s second annual ranking of Canada’s Top Growing Companies Welland, ON (Sept. 28, 2020) – Billyard Insurance Group is proud to announce it placed #63 on the 2020 Report on Business’ ranking of Canada’s Top Growing Companies. Canada’s Top Growing Companies ranks Canadian companies based on a three-year revenue growth. Billyard Insurance Group (BIG) earned its spot with a three-year revenue growth of 817%. Billyard Insurance Group is an Ontario insurance brokerage with a holistic approach to insurance offering home & auto insurance, commercial insurance, travel insurance, pet insurance, life insurance as well as financial planning services. At its inception in 1998, BIG originated as a local insurance brokerage in Welland, ON. With President Stephen Billyard and his team spearheading the way with strategic innovation, BIG has now expanded to 42 locations across Ontario. In the process, they have built a broker force of 425-strong and growing, including 80 support staff at their Head Office in Welland. The effectiveness of their growth strategy over the past few years has come from a strong focus on recruiting top talent and attracting brokers by providing industry leading training and support. While much of the insurance industry has moved to a...

Courtesy of LIMRA All over the world, consumers rely on life insurance to protect their families and provide financial security. As we highlight the importance of life insurance as we wrap up Life Insurance Awareness Month (LIAM) in the United States, here’s a look at how consumers around the globe think about life insurance. Compared to the U.S., consumers in the Asia Pacific region are far more likely to have life insurance coverage. According to a recent LIMRA study, three quarters of surveyed consumers in Hong Kong, India, Singapore, Taiwan and 7 in 10 consumers in China and Thailand say they own life insurance. However, the proportion of people who own life insurance falls below the percentage who believe they need life insurance. The study finds the primary reason for owning life insurance varies by country. For example, in South Korea, China, France and India the top reason for owning life insurance is to supplement their retirement income, whereas in Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand, consumers are far more concerned about replacing the income of a wage earner. Advertisement In the U.S. and Brazil, consumers say they are most interested in using the benefit for final expenses...

Staff  | September 29, 2020 Three-quarters (74 per cent) of Canadians said they’d accept a slightly lower salary in exchange for a better — or any — pension plan, according to a new survey by the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan and Abacus Data. The survey, which was conducted online in May and June among 3,500 Canadians aged 18 or older, showed a slight drop from the 80 per cent of respondents who said the same thing last year. “This year’s findings reaffirm Canadians’ personal and societal concerns around retirement security,” said Steven McCormick, senior vice-president of plan operations at the HOOPP, in a press release. “Immediate public health and financial considerations stemming from COVID-19 have not changed Canadians’ commitment to pensions and their willingness to pay for them to ensure a better future for themselves and for everyone.” Read: 80% of Canadians would prefer pension improvements over salary increase: HOOPP In relation to the coronavirus pandemic, 57 per cent of respondents reported that their own financial situation has been harmed since March, while 62 per cent said they’re concerned about the value of their investments/savings as a result of the pandemic. In addition, more Canadians are concerned about their retirement security (55 per...

Staff  | September 29, 2020 More than a third (36 per cent) of Canadian organizations froze salaries in 2020, compared to a pre-coronavirus forecast of just two per cent, according to Morneau Shepell Ltd.’s annual salary projection survey. The trend is likely to hold true for the coming year, with almost half (46 per cent) of employers saying they’re uncertain about whether to increase or freeze salaries, while 13 per cent have already committed to doing so in 2021. For the first time since the 2008 financial crisis, the annual survey saw the national average base salary increase projection drop below two per cent, driven by the combined impact of salary freezes and economic instability due to the pandemic. Read: Employers using hiring, wage freezes to combat effects of coronavirus: survey In 2019, the average salary increase, including freezes, was 2.4 per cent year-over-year, a significantly higher number when compared to the actual base salary increase of 1.6 per cent in 2020. For 2021, survey respondents said they’re anticipating a slight recovery, with base salaries expected to increase by an average of 1.9 per cent, including salary freezes.  The survey also found that some provinces are expecting to be harder hit than others. In Alberta,...

PR Newswire Chubb announced that it has named Jeffrey Updyke Vice President, Chubb Group and Division President, Chubb Small Business. In this capacity, Mr. Updyke will have executive operating responsibility for Chubb’s retail insurance business that serves small commercial clients in the U.S. and Canada. He will oversee all facets of the business including strategy, product and business development, underwriting and service operations, and profit and loss performance. Mr. Updyke will report to John Lupica, Vice Chairman, Chubb Group and President of North America Insurance. “Over the last several years, we have made significant investments to deliver an exceptional offering for small businesses and their agents, including the introduction of an award-winning digital platform called Chubb Marketplace,” said Mr. Lupica.  “Small business will continue to be a strategic priority for Chubb and a critical part of our North America franchise.” “I am so pleased to have someone of Jeff’s caliber take on the responsibilities of leading this dynamic team of seasoned professionals that have paved the way for this fast-growing business,” he continued. “Jeff’s proven leadership and depth of experience in underwriting and understanding the needs of our distribution partners, particularly the importance of offering exceptional digital experiences, will be a...

New usage-based policy enables businesses to meet surge in demand Hamilton, Bermuda (Sept. 16, 2020) – AXA XL, in collaboration with the Centre for Risk Studies (“CCRS”) at Cambridge Judge Business School, has released a comprehensive report demonstrating the impact that (re)insurance has on the speed and quality of recovery following natural disasters. The report, titled “Optimizing Disaster Recovery: The Role of Insurance Capital in Improving Economic Resilience”, also outlines the growing economic impact of natural disasters over the past three to four decades. It notes that annual average loss from such catastrophes rose from an average of USD 27 billion in 1970-1980 to nearly USD 200 billion in 2010-2019, driven by global economic development and the increasing value of assets in hazardous areas, particularly in fast-growing regions such as Southeast Asia. Key findings of the report include: Each percentage point increase in insurance penetration (non-life premiums divided by a country’s GDP) reduces recovery times by almost 12 months. Events in countries with high insurance penetration (3% – 4% including in Western Europe, Japan, Australia, South Korea) have an average recovery rate of less than 12 months and events in countries with very low insurance penetration (Bangladesh, Haiti, Nepal, Philippines)...

Gold Bars 1000 grams. Concept of wealth and reserve. Staff  | September 28, 2020 Since the mid-1970s, gold prices have increased in periods when investors were concerned about future inflation. Currently, gold prices are near highs comparable to January 1980, when concerns about stagflation were prevalent, and to August 2011, during widespread concerns about the impacts of quantitative easing. A new paper by Claude Erb, a retired managing director at TCW Group Inc., Campbell Harvey, a finance professor at Duke University, and Tadas Viskanta, director of investor education at Ritholtz Wealth Management LLC, argues that the real price of gold today is expensive and that the historical evidence shows that gold is an unreliable inflation hedge. Read: Back to basics on currency hedging From January 1980 to the beginning of 1985, inflation averaged 6.3 per cent per year, while the nominal price of gold fell 55 per cent and the real, inflation-adjusted price of gold fell 65 per cent, noted the paper. And from August 2011 to August 2016, inflation averaged 1.2 per cent per year and the nominal price of gold fell about 28 per cent, while the real price of gold fell about 33 per cent. “Currently, some are concerned...

InsurTech leader supports brokers with solutions that combine Vertafore’s unparalleled innovation with uniquely Canadian expertise Montreal, QC (Sept. 23, 2020) – Keal™ Technology, the Canadian subsidiary of North American InsurTech leader Vertafore, is pleased to announce that it is rebranding to Vertafore Canada, reinforcing its commitment to industry-leading technology for Canadian insurance brokers. It has been a year of transformation for Keal, including the appointments of a new General Manager and a new product leader, the launch of a new Cloud platform and the introduction of InsurLink to the Canadian marketplace. This rebrand is part of the company’s strategy to deliver value to Canadian brokers through the strengthening of the Canadian leadership team and a renewed focus on bringing innovation to market. “Given our commitment to deliver more innovation to Canada through a stronger alignment with Vertafore, it’s a natural next step to rebrand from Keal to Vertafore Canada,” noted Dimitrios Argitis, GM and VP of Vertafore Canada. “Leveraging the power of Vertafore is enabling us to bring the right solutions to Canadian brokers by bringing together the best of both worlds.” Transformative InsurTech for Canadian brokers Along with its new name, Vertafore Canada is renewing its focus on innovation...

Ontario agri-business mutual insurer to leverage Guidewire to enable digital transformation, deliver service excellence, and accelerate product launches Listowel, ON (Sept. 25, 2020) – Trillium Mutual Insurance Company, an agri-business mutual insurer based out of Listowel, Ontario, and Guidewire Software, Inc., the platform P&C insurers trust to engage, innovate, and grow efficiently, are pleased to announce that Trillium Mutual has selected Guidewire to enable digital transformation, deliver service excellence, and accelerate product launches. By implementing Guidewire’s leading-edge industry platform, Trillium Mutual will be able to ensure that it is in step with the majority of the Canadian P&C industry and build upon its commitment to push for innovation in all areas of its business. The company will also be able to continue providing the exceptional service and commitment to mutuality that its partners and members have come to expect in a rapidly-changing insurance marketplace, from digitally interfacing with partners for policy changes and new business to providing easy access to its members during a claim. “Through reduced speed-to-market of new products and technologies, the introduction of new levels of efficiency and automation through guided workflows based on industry-validated best practices, and the proliferation of Guidewire in the Canadian P&C industry,...

Toronto, ON (Sept. 28, 2020) – Ecclesiastical has launched a planning framework to help organizations develop a strategic risk-based approach to manage their operations and ensure they are able to cope in the COVID-19 environment. COVID-19 has exposed new risks, ranging from social distancing to uncertain customer demand and so it is vitally important that organizations are able to adapt and ensure the safety of employees, volunteers, customers, and visitors. The plan includes a set of tools that have been designed to help organizations identify any potential impact, risks and opportunities going forward. These include checklists to look at the impact of the pandemic on the business – for example whether a lack of technology has hampered delivery of service, to the challenges of keeping stakeholders informed as well as tips to support immediate changes to how an organization works. By reviewing existing strategies and adapting them where needed, businesses should be in a stronger position to support their long-term viability. Colin Robertson, Vice President, Operations and Risk Control at Ecclesiastical, said: “In these incredibly challenging times, organizations across the country have shown amazing resilience and flexibility to adapt to a new landscape, while managing the risks associated with a...