Insurable Interest Canadian Insurance Blog

Edelweiss Tokio Life partners with Element AI to develop strategic AI roadmap and prioritize investments Montréal, QC (Aug. 18, 2020) – Element AI, a global developer of artificial intelligence-powered (AI) solutions and products, is pleased to announce the Indian insurer Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance as its newest client. Launched in 2011, Edelweiss Tokio Life has quickly become an important player in India’s life insurance market as one of the most innovative insurers with a product offering that fits today’s customer expectations. The Element AI team will work closely with Edelweiss Tokio Life to create an actionable roadmap for strategic AI deployment for the company, which will ultimately support a detailed AI transformation plan. This work will utilize unique learnings and insights from Element AI to establish technical feasibility and identify AI use cases. Commenting on the development, Nilesh Parmar, Chief Operating Officer, Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance said, “As an organisation, we are focused on building agility and scalability within our processes and systems. With a single-minded focus on delivering a seamless and superior customer experience, we want to empower ourselves with digital technologies like artificial intelligence that can help us better serve our customers. We are glad to have found...

Aon launches Virtual Reinsurance Renewal Season online event Chicago, IL (Aug. 18, 2020) – Aon plc, a leading global professional services firm providing a broad range of risk, retirement and health solutions, is pleased to announce the launch of its Virtual Reinsurance Renewal Season, calling for the re/insurance industry to collaborate to bring capital closer to clients’ needs and drive growth across the global insurance ecosystem. Andy Marcell, CEO of Aon’s Reinsurance Solutions business, said: “In an uncertain global economy, one thing is clear – reinsurance has never been more important as a strategic tool for client success. We are committed to collaborating with insurers and markets towards the 1st January renewals to help clients protect people and assets, strengthen their balance sheets and make better business decisions that reduce volatility.” While many of Aon’s insurer clients will continue to interact with broking, analytics and claims teams through virtual meetings, Aon’s Virtual Reinsurance Renewal Season platform aims to capture the conference experience with: latest insights on market dynamics and the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic innovation labs newsroom fireside chats with C-Suite leaders Andy Marcell added: “The goal of the fireside chats is to drive growth across the...

Economical Insurance will provide peace of mind for drivers who use the Uber network and their customers in four Canadian provinces, beginning September 1, 2020 Waterloo, ON (Aug. 18, 2020) – Economical Insurance is pleased to announced a new and significant relationship with Uber in Canada, designed to provide insurance coverage for every Uber Rides and Uber Eats trip in Alberta, Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia. The relationship is expected to launch September 1, 2020. “At Economical, we believe in finding innovative solutions to changing customer expectations, which is exactly what Uber has done for transportation globally,” said Rowan Saunders, President and CEO, Economical Insurance. “Our initiative with Uber continues our focus on digital transformation. It is another example of how we’re blending our insurance industry expertise with technology to support a better customer experience. We are proud that Uber has chosen Economical as their rideshare insurer in Canada going forward.” “Uber has been a leader in the ridesharing industry, making sure every trip is insured. As our business has grown, we recognize the importance of strong partners like Economical Insurance. We are excited to partner with Economical Insurance in Canada to bring their high class service and trusted protection...

Launch of ClaimsPro Connect Mississauga, ON (Aug. 17, 2020) – ClaimsPro, an independent adjusting and claims management leader in North America, is pleased to announce the launch of ClaimsPro Connect, an enhanced and improved claims data and reporting system for their clients. Previously known as Client Access, ClaimsPro Connect introduces improved features in response to an increased demand in the marketplace for more advanced management and claims reporting data. As the pace of our industry increases, ClaimsPro Connect gives our clients access to enhanced claim file data using advanced security controls and full interactivity with Google applications to allow for claim geographic mapping and regional views. All the existing data and reporting capabilities are still available within the system, now with a much more aesthetic look and improved user experience. Clients will have access to more advanced loss data using new reporting tools with greater customization and download options as well as tailored searches and dashboard views. ClaimsPro Connect users have quick access to run reports in real time and select layouts for different subsets and loss contexts. Further, they can tailor their file search results to their specifications, meaning they only see the most relevant data. Search results can...

New Novarica brief describes the challenges and best practices for utilizing use cases to understand business and IT goals throughout the project lifecycle Boston, MA (Aug. 11, 2020) – A common understanding across the user community, business, and IT can produce a more effective end product and enhance relationships. In a new executive brief, Developing and Utilizing Use Cases: Key Issues and Best Practices, research and advisory firm Novarica describes the value, challenges, and best practices for utilizing use cases to understand the goals and development of requirements throughout the project lifecycle. “Insurers should adopt processes and documentation methods that work for them to help their projects succeed,” said Nancy Casbarro, Vice President of Research and Consulting and author of Novarica’s new report. “Implementing consistent approaches to use cases that mature into complete requirements can help insurers facilitate business process understanding, document system specifics, and deliver on user needs—making projects run more smoothly and improving outcomes.” Click here for the table of contents or to access the report. Report Summary This brief describes the value, challenges, and best practices for utilizing use cases to understand the goals and development of requirements throughout the project lifecycle. A common understanding across the...

New SMA Blog by Deb Smallwood & Megan Bock Zarnoch, Strategy Meets Action Boston, MA (Aug. 10, 2020) – The world is changing fast. And commercial insurance fills an increasingly important need in our world by creating predictability out of uncertainty and helping businesses of all sizes navigate this turbulent time. This insurance model enables businesses to continue to participate in the economy; fulfill product and service needs; keep the population fed, clothed, and living in safety; provide employment to so many across the nation – and prevent devastation due to the unforeseen impact of a natural disaster, accidental event, or alleged liability. We believe that this is critical: commercial insurance must withstand and evolve with the changing environment to continue to fulfill its purpose. At present, the deck is stacked against many companies, and a short-term “strategic” mindset and siloed approach to digital transformation and new technologies has left those organizations unaware of the impending trouble. We believe that there is still hope: A holistic paradigm shift that is centered in culture can leapfrog innovative companies to the forefront of insurance and position our industry ahead of other industries in the battle for profits, talent, market share, and reputation....

Kelsey Rolfe | August 19, 2020 The Newfoundland and Labrador Court of Appeal has found a labour arbitrator failed to properly analyze an employer’s efforts to accommodate an employee taking medical cannabis for his chronic pain. The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers initially filed a grievance on behalf of one of its members, who was refused employment by Valard Construction for failing to pass a drug test after disclosing his use of medical cannabis. In arbitration, the company asserted that, while denying employment on the grounds of the employee’s medical cannabis use constituted a case of discrimination prohibited by the Human Rights Act, it was done so due to “good faith occupational qualification” or the ability to work unimpaired. Read: Rethinking long-term disability with cannabis-assisted return to work While the union noted there were no other positions onsite the employee could have filled, it argued the company still failed to accommodate his disability. The labour arbitrator denied the grievance, noting the employee would have been in a safety-sensitive position and there was no alternate medicine that could manage his condition. As well, Valard would have no way to assess the employee’s potential impairment on the job site given the lack of established scientific or medical standard for cannabis impairment, the arbitrator wrote, and “the...

Staff  | August 19, 2020 The value of assets held by Canadian trusteed pension funds fell 3.3 per cent to $2.02 trillion in the first quarter of 2020, according to new data from Statistics Canada. Despite the quarterly drop, the funds posted a year-over-year increase of 2.5 per cent. Statistics Canada’s update noted the overall decrease in the quarter was mitigated by the performance of the largest 10 funds, which hold nearly 50 per cent of the total assets and whose market value fell an average of just 1.5 per cent. “The onset of COVID-19 affected the market value of assets held by Canadian trusteed pension funds,” it said. “However, the decrease in value was not as sharp as the 21.6 per cent drop in the [S&P/TSX composite index] in the first quarter. The smaller declines in pension fund assets can likely be attributed to active management and the diversification of their holdings.” Read: Value of assets in trusteed pension funds up 3% in first quarter: Stats Can Looking by assets type, short-term investments were up by nearly a third (29.7 per cent), followed by mortgages (one per cent), real estate (0.7 per cent) and bonds (0.3 per cent). On the other hand, stocks were down sharply, at negative 15.7 per cent, while...

Last week, Rise People announced the launch of Canada’s first advisor engagement platform, which promised to “modernize the group insurance sales and administration process from end-to-end.” And according to Julie Bevacqua, the company’s president, that move represented the latest step in addressing an ever-present need. “What we find is that when it comes to the employee experience, clients are demanding flexibility with their HR technology,” Bevacqua told Life and Health Professional. “At the same time, advisors are wanting to offer this best-in-class local group benefits experience to their clients, and they also want to offer a modern digital experience.” With the demands of both advisors and client companies in mind, Rise took the opportunity to work with both stakeholder groups to develop that solution. The goal sounded straightforward enough – to make the benefits experience powerfully simple across the ecosystem – but arriving there required checking off items on a very comprehensive wish list of features. “A key element at the forefront of those discussions was the necessity for simple workflow,” Bevacqua said. “Advisors were looking for solutions that digitized enrolment. They’ve asked us for access to an online marketplace that even hosts their offers, not necessarily from carriers, like...

Canada’s largest life insurance company has appointed a new leader to help steer its ongoing shift toward a more digital and agile business model. Manulife Canada has named Sarah Miller Wright as its new head of Operations. Wright will be sitting on both the global operations and Canada leadership teams. In an emailed statement, Manulife said Wright’s responsibilities will include “continuing to reimagine how and when Manulife Canada interacts with customers across all its channels,” as well as “build foundational capabilities to drive effectiveness and improve the customer experience.” Wright’s professional career includes leadership roles in client services and customer care at companies including Virgin Mobile Canada and BCE Inc. Most recently, she was with Shaw Communications, where she moved through several senior leadership roles that culminated in her being SVP, Digital, Product & Service Delivery. At Shaw, she took charge of driving digital adoption to enhance the overall customer experience. She also spearheaded the company’s shift to more agile ways of working, building more effective systems and processes, and finding new ways to collaborate across teams. A passionate believer in developing strong talent to create a high-performing culture, Wright co-founded an employee resource group at Shaw to support women...