Insurable Interest Canadian Insurance Blog

Richmond Times-Dispatch (VA) Henrico County-based Genworth Financial Inc. has received all of the regulatory approvals needed for its planned acquisition by a China-based investment firm, but the companies are delaying the deal by as much as an additional three months because of the economic disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Genworth, an insurance company with thousands of employees in Virginia, said it has agreed to delay its planned acquisition by China Oceanwide Holdings Group Co. Ltd. for the 14th time since the deal was first announced in October 2016. The companies have agreed to a waiver that extends the previous deadline of March 31 to complete the deal to no later than June 30, Genworth announced Tuesday. The companies said they hope to close the deal by the end of May “if feasible,” but the three-month extension “is a prudent step the parties are taking because of the significantly higher volatility and substantially reduced liquidity in the global financial markets due to the coronavirus pandemic, which has negatively impacted financing global acquisitions.” Genworth, which sells home mortgage and long-term care insurance, agreed to be acquired by China Oceanwide for $5.43 a share, or about $2.7 billion, in October 2016. Shares...

Leaders of four insurance industry organizations have sent letters to every state insurance licensing authority requesting temporary licensing accommodations for producers who cannot complete regular licensing requirements because of the COVID-19 outbreak. The letters were sent by leaders of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, AALU/GAMA and the National Association of Independent Life Brokerage Agencies. Due to the public health crisis, many third-party testing centers have closed, and it is impossible for licensees to appear in person to be fingerprinted in many jurisdictions. The letter notes that demand for life insurance among members of the public has increased, but many would-be producers are unavailable to serve consumers because of the licensing backlog. Some states have taken action to provide temporary licenses prior to applicants completing testing and fingerprinting requirements. Most states give insurance regulators the authority to waive licensing requirements when it is in the public interest to do so. Louisiana is one state that has enacted an emergency temporary licensing regulation, and the letter provides that regulation as an example other states might follow. Read the original article at insurancenewsnet.com

Antigonish, NS (Apr. 1, 2020) – During February 2020, Antigonish Farmers’ Mutual successfully implemented a cloud-based solution for their complete business operations.  This implementation has allowed Antigonish Farmers’ Mutual to enable a ‘Work from Home’ strategy to ensure they are maintaining service to their community and policyholders while being able to keep their team and business operations efficient. Antigonish Farmer’s Mutual has successfully moved their entire technology footprint over to a private cloud solution with the assistance of their technology partners in this project, iVedha and Cognition+. Working together, Cognition+ and iVedha relocated Antigonish’s entire IT environment onto iVedha’s cloud infrastructure platform, including Antigonish’s future enterprise insurance platform, the Insurance Business Solution (IBS®).  This has resulted in a wealth of benefits, including: Fully managed and monitored environment IT infrastructure and enterprise software Managed Email services Systems backup Highly secure with Canadian data residency All technology concerns moved to skilled professional organizations (iVedha & MCCG), the Antigonish team is freed up to focus on their core business of insurance Overall improved Enterprise Risk Management on Infrastructure Technology “We’ve been thrilled that we’ve been able to enable a number of our team to work from home, staying safe, during the current COVID...

Staff | April 1, 2020 With the coronavirus continuing to affect businesses across North America, employers are eyeing a number of cost-containment strategies, including hiring freezes, wage freezes and delayed pay raises, according to a new survey by Willis Towers Watson. The survey, which polled more than 800 companies during the third week of March, found 42 per cent of respondents have frozen or reduced hiring. Another 28 per cent said they will or might do the same, while 18 per cent said they’ve eliminated or reduced the hiring of seasonal workers, with 35 per cent planning or considering doing so. Read: La Presse reducing salaries, employer pension contributions “Companies’ highest priorities remain the physical and financial well-being of their employees,” said Adrienne Altman, managing director and North America head of rewards at Willis Towers Watson, in a press release. “However, amid heightened concern over the impact the virus will have on their operations, companies have started to implement some of the same cost control measures we saw during the last recession.” Only seven per cent of survey respondents said they’ve laid off employees. However, 37 per cent said they will or may do so in the future. In terms of pay, 12 per cent...

Staff | April 1, 2020 Trimac Transportation is partnering with Calgary-headquartered wellness app Headversity to provide mental-health and resilience training for its workers. Truckers have been experiencing elevated levels of stress since the federal government declared trucking an essential service in Canada during the coronavirus pandemic, according to the North American transportation company. “COVID-19 has impacted everybody,” said Kara Gillespie, vice-president of people and culture at Trimac, in a press release. “People are worried about their family, friends, community and how it will impact the economy and their jobs. We are all experiencing stress and anxiety levels higher than ever before. Read: How to support employees’ mental health during coronavirus “The transportation industry has been recognized as an essential service required to keep going and deliver much-needed goods and supplies,” she added. “Without drivers, mechanics, washrack technicians and dispatchers continuing to do what they do each day, grocery store shelves would be empty, gas stations would run out of fuel and medical supplies would not get to hospitals. This is a heavy, but honourable, burden our industry carries.” Truckers have also been finding it more difficult to access necessities like food, bathrooms and hotels while on the road during the pandemic, noted Gillespie. “This is adding...

Montreal, QC (Mar. 24, 2020) – Manulife is pleased to announce its collaboration with dacadoo, a Swiss-based global digital health platform provider to enhance the company’s digital offerings in Asia. Under this new partnership, dacadoo will strengthen Manulife’s existing health engagement platform, ManulifeMOVE, to enable customers to more easily understand their health and be guided to develop healthier habits. Using behavioural science, online coaching functions and curated wellness content, the Manulife-dacadoo partnership will enrich ManulifeMOVE’s offering. The enhanced capabilities, which feature dacadoo’s patented Health Score, will provide customers a new scientific yet simple scoring method to measure how healthy they are and what they need to do to stay healthy. This personalised journey is based on over 2,500 clinical papers and extensive scientific data from dacadoo. Manulife is simplifying the science and making it easier for ManulifeMOVE customers to make better health decisions by encouraging them to take simple, preventative actions, including on better nutrition, exercise and sleep habits, to improve their long-term health. Anil Wadhwani, President and Chief Executive Officer, Manulife Asia, said: “We are delighted to be partnering with dacadoo. There is never a better time than now to take control of your health. At Manulife, our goal...

By Adam Balinsky When an individual is diagnosed with an advanced-stage illness, there is a great deal of planning that follows – from weighing various treatment options and informing loved ones to preparing financially for the future. For some, financial preparations may seem as simple as double-checking their life insurance policy. As well-informed life insurance professionals and financial planners know, however, it’s hardly that simple. Life insurance is an invaluable asset to those facing advanced-stage illness. It’s also a flexible asset that can be leveraged in different ways to meet individuals’ various financial needs. This flexibility has become increasingly important. Why? So many Americans battling an advanced-stage disease also face “financial toxicity,” or the financial stress that comes with the cost of copayments, deductibles, coinsurance, medicine and not being able to work. The National Cancer Institute reports some cancer survivors say they spend more than 20 percent of their annual income on medical care. What does this all boil down to? It is essential that individuals and their advisors know exactly how their life insurance can be leveraged. It could be the difference between financial control and financial toxicity. I have encountered several misconceptions about life insurance. Here are a...

New SMA Blog by Mark Breading, Partner, Strategy Meets Action — If there is one thing that we have all learned with the spread of COVID-19, it is that there is virtually no industry that is immune to its impact. The global pandemic is disrupting the daily lives of individuals, the operations of businesses, the activities of governments, and even the approach of cherished institutions like museums, universities, and religious organizations. The P&C insurance industry, like many others, is reeling from the implications of the virus. Amid the rapid changes that are taking place, it is important to assess the impact of COVID-19 on the InsurTech movement. After all, InsurTech has always been touted as the ultimate disruptor of the insurance industry. But, might COVID-19 prove to be a disruptor to InsurTech? First, it is essential to recognize that the ultimate impact will depend largely on the duration of the virus. If the US and the world at large gain control of the virus in the next 6-8 weeks, then there will be short term pain for all (including InsurTech). But there is likely to be a sharp rebound – the V-shaped recovery that economists are talking about. If the...

The outlook for the US life insurance sector has been changed to negative from stable, owing to the unprecedented economic turmoil from the coronavirus pandemic amid the decline in US Treasury rates and a higher likelihood of a prolonged low rate environment, Moody’s Investors Service says in a new report. US life insurers have been significantly challenged by lower-for-longer interest rates, particularly at the long end of the curve, a credit negative for the sector. “Over time, we expect much of the impact of low rates will affect insurers’ earnings and reduce interest-sensitive product earnings because of spread compression, which is prevalent in the already sizable blocks of the industry’s liabilities at minimum guaranteed rates,” Moody’s Vice President Manoj Jethani says. “There is also the risk of more sizable charges on a GAAP and statutory accounting basis, as insurers review the viability of their long-term interest rate assumptions.” While interest rates have been relatively low for more than a decade, insurers have taken steps to manage the current environment, but earnings of interest-sensitive products through spread compression will continue to see further declines. Moreover, an increase in defaults or a sharp drop in returns from alternative investments could also cause...

London, UK (Mar. 31, 2020) – Aon plc, a leading global professional services firm providing a broad range of risk, retirement and health solutions, has enhanced its reinsurer trading portal, ABConnect Placements, to electronically bind treaty placements with Lloyd’s of London and International Underwriting Association (IUA) markets from 1 April renewals. The new bind feature enables Lloyd’s of London and International Underwriting Association (IUA) markets to complete and bind Aon’s treaty reinsurance placements without the need for face-to-face meetings. Andy Marcell, CEO of Aon’s Reinsurance Solutions business, said: “With the global outbreak of COVID-19, electronic and online capabilities play an even more vital role in reinsurance transactions as we adapt the way we operate to support remote working. Not only is ABConnect Placements an important part of Aon’s overall digital strategy, it has very suddenly become a critical method to place treaty business as we continue to best serve our insurer clients. It leverages our global sales technology and gives reinsurers a single platform to remotely access all treaty placements – traditional or via auction.” Nick Frankland, UK CEO of Aon’s Reinsurance Solutions business, added: “This is another breakthrough in the modernization of the London market. We are excited to...