Ontario’s Court of Appeal found a home insurer, in principle, has a duty to defend a claim against a homeowner in a property sale, because a lower court can’t assume the home insurance policy’s exclusion for ‘intentional acts’ such as fraud would apply to a buyer’s claim of negligence. Nonetheless, the home insurer does not […]
By David Gambrill | September 16, 2024
3 min read
Ontario’s Licence Appeal Tribunal is tightening up the definition of an auto “accident,” most recently finding that walking to a vehicle, or stepping into the vehicle to protect yourself against an assault, is not the same as the “ordinary use” of a vehicle. For years, personal injury lawyers sued auto insurers for accident benefits simply […]
By David Gambrill | September 13, 2024
3 min read
Flooding after Tropical Storm Debby passed through Montreal and nearby regions of Quebec in August caused $2.5 billion in insured damage, according to initial estimates from Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. (CatIQ). The Aug. 9 and 10 catastrophe now ranks as the costliest insured event in Quebec’s history, says Insurance Bureau of Canada. “The record-breaking […]
By Alyssa DiSabatino | September 13, 2024
2 min read
Calgary’s hailstorm in early August caused nearly $2.8 billion in insured damage, eclipsing the previous record for a single hailstorm ($1.2 billion) set in 2020. “This hailstorm is the second-costliest event in Canada’s history, following the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire,” Insurance Bureau of Canada said in a release, citing data from Catastrophe Indices and Quantification […]
By David Gambrill | September 11, 2024
4 min read
Although direct insured losses from the CrowdStrike software update error weren’t as large as expected, threat actors did try capitalizing on the resulting ‘blue screen of death’ errors to maximize damage, a CFC executive said during a recent webinar. On the morning of July 19, endpoint security company CrowdStrike released an update to its Falcon […]
By Jason Contant | September 10, 2024
3 min read
After four consecutive NatCat events in one month resulted in more than 228,000 claims, Canada’s property and casualty insurance industry is urging regulators to change how adjusters are licensed in the country. “The ability to rapidly deploy adjusters is an increasingly vital component of insurers’ claims response,” says an open letter sent by a P&C […]
By David Gambrill | September 10, 2024
3 min read
U.S. property and casualty insurer PURE Insurance has expanded into Canada with home insurance for affluent homeowners whose properties are worth between $2 million and $100 million. Privilege Underwriters Reciprocal Exchange (PURE) announced its first international expansion outside of the U.S. on Monday with the launch of a Toronto office that will begin offering home […]
By Jason Contant | September 9, 2024
3 min read
All three levels of government — federal, provincial, and municipal — are discussing how to streamline the rebuild of the Town of Jasper, Alta., which has a complex, 100-year-old leasing arrangement and stringent rules around development on Parks Canada land. Because of numerous unresolved issues around rebuilding on Parks Canada land, Jasper’s reconstruction will likely […]
By David Gambrill | September 9, 2024
5 min read
Insurers have handled double the amount of claims this summer compared to last year, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada. Approximately 228,000 insurance claims have been filed following this summer’s four major catastrophes: flooding in Toronto and southern Ontario, the Jasper wildfire, the Calgary hailstorm, and flooding in Quebec. All occurred in the span […]
By Alyssa DiSabatino | September 9, 2024
2 min read
Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to include comments from ClaimsPro. Insured losses from the Jasper, Alta. wildfire have topped $880 million, according to initial estimates from Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. (CatIQ). The sudden and intense wildfire, which began July 22, damaged or destroyed one-third of the community. The Jasper wildfire is […]
By Jason Contant | September 4, 2024
4 min read