Insurable Interest Canadian Insurance Blog

Detroit Free Press (MI) Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel said last year he wanted Jim Harbaugh to stay at U-M until he retired. On Monday, Manuel reiterated that same desire. “I stand by my decision and my statement that I want him to retire here,” Manuel said at the Big Ten athletic director meetings. When asked if he had discussed a contract extension with Harbuagh, Manuel declined to comment. “I’m not going to announce any conversations I’ve had with Jim about his contract or whatever,” Manuel said. Harbaugh is about to enter Year 5 of his seven-year deal that was crafted by then-interim athletic director Jim Hackett. In 2016, a deferred compensation addendum in the form of a life insurance policy added $2 million to Harbaugh’s yearly earnings. Last year, Harbaugh earned $7.504 million in total pay, third-highest in the nation behind Alabama’s Nick Saban and Ohio State’s Urban Meyer, who has since retired. Harbaugh’s original contract is set to expire in 2021. His base salary is scheduled to increase by 10 percent in January 2020. His contract also calls for “an evaluation of Harbaugh’s performance and a review of his compensation compared with that of his ‘peers’ at this...

Rise People Inc., a digital HR, payroll and group benefits platform, announced on May 14 the appointment of Diane Lafontaine as Chief Quebec Officer of Rise, effective May 27. Lafontaine has more than 25 years of business experience with organizations such as CBC/Radio-Canada, The Canadian Space Agency, and Sun Life for the last 8 years. Her role will be to lead the expansion of Rise in Quebec, says the company. “The growth and development of Quebec is crucial to our strategy…Diane’s business background and diverse experience in the group benefits and retirement savings space coupled with our one-of-a-kind, fully-integrated people management platform will ensure we offer a first-class digital experience to Quebec businesses,” said Faiz Abdulla, founder and CEO at Rise People in an announcement.  Last October, Rise and Sun life entered into a strategic relationship. In April, Rise launched an integrated benefits administration solution built in collaboration with Sun Life. Read the original article at insurance-journal.ca

The Court of Québec, District of Gatineau, has imposed fines totaling $13,055,984 on Michel Bernard for taking out life insurance policies for fictitious clients, following an agreement between the respondent and Quebec regulator, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF). Bernard pleaded guilty to both counts he faced, underlined the AMF. He provided false or misleading information to Equitable Life Insurance Company of Canada and Foresters Life Insurance Company by making false life insurance and health insurance applications for fictitious loan insurance customers. FlashFinance.ca, a sister publication of Insurance Journal, previously reported that Bernard made 105 applications on behalf of 210 insureds to cover fictitious debts. The same scheme was used with another insurer, for 128 applications on behalf of 251 policyholders. The events occurred between Dec. 2013 and Sept. 2016, while Bernard was with his company BGA Groupe Financier. Since his firm went bankrupt, the AMF agreed to withdraw the two charges against BGA for providing false or misleading information to the insurers concerned. Bernard was also permanently banned from Quebec’s Chambre de la sécurité financière in Nov. 2017. The amount of the fines is double the amount of Bernard’s profit of $6,527,992, says the AMF. Read the original article...

The U.S. Capitol. Members of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors are urging Congress to enact a package that would help workers better prepare for retirement. NAIFA members are travelling to Washington Tuesday and Wednesday for their annual political advocacy event. The 2019 NAIFA Congressional Conference kicks off Tuesday with an advocacy briefing. Members will travel to the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday to meet with their elected representatives. NAIFA members are asking Congress to enact the SECURE Act, (H.R. 1994) in the House of Representatives, and RESA (S. 972) in the Senate. This is a package of bipartisan retirement provisions that include increased access to retirement plans, expanded guaranteed retirement income, and provide tools to help workers better understand how much monthly income is possible from their retirement savings account. This legislation also would expand open multiple-employer plans that would allow small business to join other employers, significantly reducing costs and administrative responsibilities. A lifetime income disclosure would help retirement savers estimate how much monthly income could be derived from their account balance. In addition, the legislation would improve access to lifetime income by enacting the annuity selection safe harbor for plan sponsors and providing lifetime income portability....

Business Wire Demand for permanent life insurance is on the rise in America’s career military, where the majority of families either already own or are currently thinking about buying this type of coverage, according to the First Command Financial Behaviors Index®. First Command’s eighth annual life insurance survey reveals that 73 percent of middle-class military families (commissioned officers and senior NCOs in pay grades E-5 and above with household incomes of at least $50,000) own some form of permanent life coverage. And 70 percent of those without permanent life coverage say they are likely to consider buying a policy for themselves or someone in their household. That’s up 21 points from the previous year and represents a record high for the annual survey. Demand for permanent life insurance among military families has been on a continuing upward trend. In 2011, just 42 percent of respondents reported owning some form of permanent life insurance and 28 percent said they were likely to purchase. Interest in permanent life insurance is considerably stronger in military families than in the general population. The Index reveals that just 42 percent of civilian families own some type of permanent coverage. Among non-owners, 45 percent say they...

Coquitlam, BC (May 13, 2019) – Xpera Risk Mitigation and Investigation, Canada’s largest national provider of investigations and risk solutions, today announced a powerful new digital evidence tool with capabilities not offered anywhere in the Canadian private risk management market. “Working in the surveillance and forensic field for over 30 years, I’ve never seen this kind of law enforcement-grade technology in the private sector,” says Len Copp, President of Xpera. “Many clients will be surprised by the level of detail and precision we can achieve in evidence analysis with this new tool.” The new Xpera Forensic Imaging (XFI) technology offers clients unique capabilities: Image Enhancement, to recover the most detail from an image whether dark or blurred or simply a non-ideal angle. Colour correction, deblurring, corrected camera perspectives, and stabilization offer more detail in client reports and uncover evidence that may have otherwise gone unnoticed. Photogrammetry, to support accident reconstruction, assess trajectory, or confirm the size of a subject based on the measurements of his/her surroundings. This confirms measurements within a frame for clients based on a single variable even after correcting the perspective. XFI also reconstructs a model for accurate assessment of positioning. More Effective and Accurate Pixelization, to...

To Celebrate National Road Safety Week, Allstate Canada Debuts a Personalized App for the Modern Driver Markham, ON (May 13, 2019) – It’s National Road Safety Week* in Canada, May 14-20, 2019 . This week highlights the behaviours that put road users most at risk so we can all help take the necessary steps to address and change them. Allstate Insurance Company of Canada’s Drivewise® app uses telematics technology to provide its auto insurance customers with insights into their driving habits so they can improve and become safer drivers. Drivewise is a personalized app for the modern driver that puts more power in their hands. Not only does the app allow drivers to learn more about their own driving habits after the completion of each trip, it also gives them the opportunity to demonstrate their safe driving behaviours for the chance to save up to 30% on their auto insurance. Participants in the Drivewise program will not experience an increase in their premium as a result of participating in the program “Every insurance company has customers who ask for lower rates because they say they are safer drivers. The Drivewise app, through telematics technology, gives Allstate Canada customers the power...

Foresters Financial has announced the appointment of Bruce Hodges as its new Chief Operating Officer. The organization says it is bolstering its senior leadership as it “repositions itself to focus on its core life insurance business.” Hodges joins the organization “at a transformative time” following its April announcement to sell assets related to its U.S. asset management business, said Foresters in a May 9 announcement. Hodges has 30 years of financial services, insurance and IT expertise, including leadership and international experience at Generali, ING, Manulife and Sun Life Financial. Hodges joins recent appointments Marcia Mendes d’Abreu, Chief Human Resources Officer; Alvin Sharma, Global Chief Financial Officer; and David Longfritz, Chief Marketing Officer. Foresters President and CEO is Jim Boyle, formerly a John Hancock CEO and member of Manulife‘s Executive team. Read the original article at insurance-journal.ca

Frédéric Pérodeau, of Quebec’s financial markets regulator – the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) – told an audience of independent financial advisors that regulation on insurance sales over the Internet is coming soon. Perodeau, the AMF’s Superintendent, Client Services and Distribution Oversight, did not announce a date for the publication of the regulation, but expressed a desire to publish it as soon as possible. “We have an unofficial date that I cannot share with you. It will certainly be in May,” he revealed at the annual conference of Quebec financial advisor association, the Association professionnelle des conseillers en services financiers (APCSF), held on May 3 in Montreal. Robust framework Perodeau says the regulation will contribute to a robust Internet sales regulatory framework. It will protect the consumer well, while at the same time being flexible enough to avoid putting the brakes on innovation, he said. The regulation will also underline the importance of advice. “Some see the regulation as a disruption or even a threat. We believe that it reaffirms the importance of the representative,” he emphasized. Draft regulation on the sale of insurance over the internet was proposed by the AMF last fall. Read the original article at insurance-journal.ca

iA Financial Corporation has reported net income attributed to common shareholders of $151.1 million for the first quarter of 2019, which is a nine per cent increase compared to $139.2 million in Q1 2018. Return on shareholders’ equity (ROE) for the last twelve months was 12.4% at the end of the quarter, compared to 11.8% at the end of Q1 2018. The company’s solvency ratio was 124% at March 31, 2019. This compares to 120% a year earlier and 126% at December 31, 2018. Group businesses post solid growth “We’re pleased with our results for the quarter, which bode well for the year and are in line with our long-term growth objectives,” said Denis Ricard, President and CEO of iA Financial Group in a May 9 statement. “Our first quarter results showed sound profitability along with strong sales in several business lines. Our group businesses posted solid growth and we’ve maintained our number one ranking in net segregated fund sales. In addition, the excellent performance of our U.S. divisions confirms that this is an important vector for growth, and we will continue to look for opportunities to increase our presence in that market. Lastly, we’ve once again shown our ability to...