Insurable Interest Canadian Insurance Blog

News & Observer (Raleigh, NC) Inside MetLife’s newest building in Cary — its third tower overlooking Lake Crabtree — the insurance giant is hoping to find the future of the insurance industry, or at least a competitive advantage. That’s where, just off the lobby, teams of startups are hard at work developing technology that could make providing insurance more efficient and profitable and keep potential customers healthier. While insurance is often viewed as a boring, rote job where people show up in suits and ties, MetLife’s new offices off Weston Parkway have all the trappings of a tech startup or co-working office. Inside its new innovation space, young workers in jeans and short-sleeve button downs make espressos in a shared kitchen in between charting out ideas on an interior wall that has been co-opted as a whiteboard. The office is open concept, with not a cubicle in sight — just shared tables and desks and a few private rooms to be used by nine young companies that are all temporarily calling Cary home. “All industries are under constant pressure to innovate and adapt, and insurance is no exception,” said John Bungert, an assistant vice president of innovation at MetLife, explaining...

GlobeNewswire Midland National® Life Insurance Company, a member of Sammons® Financial Group and one of America’s leading insurance companies, today announced a new Essential Guaranteed® Universal Life (UL) insurance product with an added Premium Recovery Endorsement and new rates. These new features allow Midland National to help consumers secure guaranteed death-benefit protection1 that meets their needs. The new Essential Guaranteed UL also includes enhanced dial-a-guarantee pricing (selecting a no-lapse guarantee period that is shorter than a guarantee to maturity) for guarantees to age 100 or less and is strong in level pay, single pay and 10-pay scenarios. “In this era of low interest rates, a number of carriers are no longer offering a lifetime guaranteed universal life insurance product. People are living longer and need to be better prepared for the future,” says Jerry Blair, chief distribution officer of Sammons Financial Group’s Life Division. “Essential Guaranteed Universal Life provides customers and their families with support when they need it most.” Essential Guaranteed UL is the latest product innovation from Midland National that builds upon their reliability and commitment to their customers, who want to protect and provide for their families after they are gone or in case of an emergency....

GlobeNewswire North American Company for Life and Health Insurance®, a member of Sammons® Financial Group and one of America’s leading insurance companies, today announced a new Custom Guarantee® Universal Life (UL) insurance product with an added Premium Recovery Endorsement and new rates. These new features allow North American to help consumers secure guaranteed death-benefit protection1 that meets their needs. The new Custom Guarantee UL also includes enhanced dial-a-guarantee pricing (selecting a no-lapse guarantee period that is shorter than a guarantee to maturity) for guarantees to age 100 or less and is strong in level pay, single pay and 10-pay scenarios. “In this era of low interest rates, a number of carriers are no longer offering a lifetime guaranteed universal life insurance product. People are living longer and need to be better prepared for the future,” says Jerry Blair, chief distribution officer of Sammons Financial Group’s Life Division. “Custom Guarantee Universal Life provides customers and their families with support when they need it most.” Custom Guarantee UL is the latest product innovation from North American that builds upon their reliability and commitment to their customers, who want to protect and provide for their families after they are gone or in case...

6,900 Canadian consumers surveyed about what brands they trust most — and what builds brand trust Chicago, IL (Aug. 19, 2019) – Leading market research firm BrandSpark International is pleased to announce the 2019 winners of its BrandSpark Most Trusted Awards (“BMTA”) program across major e-commerce and services brands. Amazon leads the way in the e-commerce categories, and businesses prioritizing trust — through unfiltered customer reviews, responsive customer service, and personalized offers — lead the way in the major services categories. Based on a survey of 6,900 Canadians, BrandSpark determined the most trusted brands in 61 diverse e-commerce and service categories. While Amazon won a majority of the e-commerce categories, specialized retailers, including Best Buy, Sephora and Sport Chek, were strongest in their categories. In services, heritage brands are strong in established categories, while new and emerging categories are being won by brands that offer the best service and that acquire subscribers quickly. “In an increasingly online world, trust has never been more important,” says Robert Levy, President of BrandSpark International. “Shoppers are seeking new and different signifiers of trust, such as online reviews and consumer-based awards on brand websites. Being a winning brand in the 2019 BrandSpark Most Trusted...

Most carriers are struggling to meet their cost of capital, and productivity has barely moved over the past decade. Taking a more structural approach to productivity is required to make significant progress. By Bernhard Kotanko, Björn Münstermann, Pradip Patiath, Jasper van Ouwerkerk, and Ulrike Vogelgesang — read the whole report Chicago, IL (Aug. 16, 2019) – The insurance industry is facing a serious structural challenge. While some lines of business have seen years of steady top-line growth, life insurance carriers in mature markets have been particularly hard hit by the low interest environment. As a consequence, the majority of carriers are not making their cost of capital. In fact, the industry as a whole is in the red by average economic profit, with huge disparities in performance among the profitable carriers and the rest of the pack. As insurers struggle to sustain growth, the pressure to boost performance has become an urgent priority. Unlike other industries, which have been able to capitalize on their investments in digital technologies, insurance hasn’t increased its overall productivity in the past ten years. In response, carriers have rolled out standard cost-cutting strategies—but with little to show for it. One of the primary culprits is...

RBC Financial says Tax Free Savings Accounts (TFSAs) are largely misunderstood by Canadian consumers. Although many will use their TFSAs for savings storage, many forget to invest those funds to benefit from the tax-free returns they could be enjoying. More, the 29th annual RBC Financial Independence in Retirement poll, conducted by Ipsos, found for the first time that more Canadians have TFSAs than Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs): 57 per cent reported having TFSAs, while only 52 per cent report having an RRSP. “TFSAs are now the preferred option of Canadians over 55 who, in the past, have primarily focused on RRSPs. When asked which plan they would choose if they could only contribute to one, a resounding two-thirds (64 per cent) selected TFSAs over RRSPs,” say the report’s authors. They say savings accounts and cash make up the majority of assets invested in TFSAs. “Canadians are drawn to the flexibility of saving cash in the TFSAs, but it shouldn’t stop there,” says Stuart Gray, director at RBC’s Financial Planning Centre of Expertise. “The true advantage of contributing money to your TFSA is to help you reach your goals, not just to have a short-term savings account. The magic happens...

Toronto, ON (Aug. 20, 2019) – CSIO is pleased to announce the launch of its Innovation and Emerging Technology Advisory Committee, or INNOTECH. The INNOTECH Advisory Committee will play a pivotal role in evaluating the application of new and emerging technology and digital innovation in the P&C insurance industry. Using fact-based research and analysis, the committee will identify opportunities believed to have the highest likelihood of success and the broadest benefits to the industry and end consumers. “I am thrilled to be part of the INNOTECH Committee,” says Dennis Dalmas, Senior Vice President, Solutions Delivery, Northbridge Insurance. “The formation of INNOTECH has presented us with a game changing opportunity. As emerging technology and digital innovation continue to drive major change in the competitive landscape, our goal is to help deliver effective solutions aimed at improving the overall customer experience.” INNOTECH Advisory Committee external members: Aviva Canada: Steve Johnston, vice-president of personal lines enablement Christopher O’Sullivan, vice-president of strategy for architecture & engineering Gore Mutual Insurance: Val Danci, principal software engineer Intact Insurance: Jeff Walker, vice-president of sales and business development Joseph Kairouz, director of IT architecture transformation & software development Northbridge Insurance: Dennis Dalmas, senior vice-president of solutions delivery RSA...

New offering delivers an FDA approved concussion testing to aid sports organizations and parents in diagnosing concussions and continuing to establish a new standard of health and safety in amateur sports San Diego, CA (Aug. 18, 2019) – ImPACT Applications, developer of ImPACT®, ImPACT Pediatric®, and ImPACT Passport™, and Player’s Health, a risk management firm specializing in amateur sports, have announced a partnership to provide concussion testing protocols to help sports organizations and parents monitor athletes for concussions. “ImPACT Applications is excited to offer its best-in-class products and services to Player’s Health subscribers and users,” said Chief Executive Officer Michael Wahlster. “The collaboration enables us to assist Player’s Health in its mission of creating a safer environment for sport.” Player’s Health will build in an option to get concussion assessments, which are FDA approved, within their applications. The new adaptation to Player’s Health and their risk management suite will give parents, coaches, trainers, and others information and the tools needed to better monitor an athlete’s health and well-being. This is yet another step to understanding and diagnosing concussions to continue creating a world of safer sport. “Our partnership with ImPACT gives us another tool to provide parents and sports organizations...

Plan sponsors are investing in distribution, data and analytics, and core systems while meeting compliance standards and seeking new customers: Novarica Boston, MA (Aug. 20, 2019) –  Providers of defined contribution retirement plans are working to attract new clients while driving down costs. They’re also trying to retain existing clients and assets by improving their investment performance and insights being used. Achieving these goals means providers in this growing market are investing in digital capabilities and monitoring changing regulation. In a new report, Business and Technology Trends: Defined Contribution Retirement Plans, research and advisory firm Novarica provides an overview of defined contribution retirement plan provider business and technology issues, data about the marketplace, and 12 examples of recent technology investments by insurers offering defined contribution retirement plans. “Although defined contribution plans were originally designed to complement more traditional defined benefit plan offerings, the reality for many plan participants is that defined contribution plans have now replaced their defined benefit counterparts,” said Nancy Casbarro, Vice President of Research and Consulting and co-author of Novarica’s new report. “Reducing operational back-office processing costs is key to carriers’ efforts to win new plan sponsors’ business while retaining existing plans. Having a clear strategy for...

Staff | August 21, 2019 More Canadians are using tax-free savings accounts than registered retirement savings accounts, at 57 per cent compared to 52 per cent, according to a new survey by the Royal Bank of Canada. It found TFSAs are now the preferred option among Canadians aged 55 or over, a group that has primarily focused on RRSPs in the past. When asked which plan they’d choose if they could only contribute to one, two-thirds (64 per cent) selected TFSAs over RRSPs. “Canadians are drawn to the flexibility of saving cash in their TFSAs, but it shouldn’t stop there,” said Stuart Gray, director of the financial planning centre of expertise at RBC. “The true advantage of contributing money to your TFSA is to help you reach your goals, not just to have a short-term savings account. Read: Canadians favour TFSAs over RRSPs: survey “The magic happens when you invest the money within your TFSA and gain the benefit of compounding, which helps your earnings generate even more earnings. You gain interest not only on your original investment, but also interest on your interest.” For all TFSA holders, the top five holdings within their plans included: savings accounts and cash (42 per cent), mutual funds (28...