Claims

Another 5 years of above-average hurricane landfall rates likely

The average risk of landfalling hurricanes in the Atlantic Basin for the next five years remains at significantly above the risk averaged over the long term, warns Risk Management Solutions (RMS).The current activity rates lead to estimates of average annual insured losses that will be 40% higher than those predicted by the long-term mean of […]

By Canadian Underwriter | November 26, 2007

1 min read

Claims

Nanotechnology, climate change, infrastructure among top risks

The four emerging risks facing insurers moving forward are nanotechnology, climate change, aging infrastructure and the unknown, Robert Landry, president and CEO of Zurichs Canadian operations told delegates of the Property Casualty Underwriters Club luncheon.While the science is still new, Landry compared the development and use of nanomaterials to that of asbestos. With so many […]

By Canadian Underwriter | November 22, 2007

2 min read

Claims

Municipal critical infrastructure assurance plan places focus on services

The City of Hamilton and the Niagara Region are proposing a joint Critical Infrastructure Assurance Program (CIAP) that, if approved by city officials, would be the first of its kind in Canada, Richard Kinchlea, emergency management coordinator, City of Hamilton, told delegates of a seminar hosted by the Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction.Typically CIAPs are […]

By Canadian Underwriter | November 16, 2007

1 min read

Claims

IBC asks governments to upgrade city infrastructures, adapt to climate change

The Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) is calling on Canadian municipal, provincial and federal governments to improve urban infrastructure so as to mitigate property damage caused by storms in an age of climate change.The Insurance Bureau of Canada will insist in the months to come that governments launch an extensive effort to rebuild the basic […]

By Canadian Underwriter | November 14, 2007

1 min read

AIR launches new terrorism model

As TRIA teeters on the brink of expiration at years end, AIR Worldwide Corporation has launched its updated U.S. terrorism model.The release of the new model incorporates the results of two years of research into the effects of a conventional bomb blast in complex urban environments, an AIR release says.Because urban density can have a […]

1 min read

Experts warn changing climate will intensify forest fires

Climatologists are warning that the recent wildfires in California may be a result of climate change and a taste of things to come, reports Lloyds.Models are suggesting the North American west coast is experiencing longer-term precipitation patterns several wet years in a row, followed by several that are drier than normal, Ronald Neilson, a professor […]

1 min read

What’s New: In Brief (November 05, 2007)

Echelon General Insurance Company has renovated its place in cyberspace and launched a newly redesigned Web site.Key features of the new site include easy navigation tools, information about the companys latest personal lines offerings (for example, new product offerings in Alberta and Ontario include collector vehicle insurance and recreational vehicle insurance) and a new resource […]

1 min read

What’s New: In Brief (November 05, 2007)

Just one month after the Ontario government introduced a tough new, anti-street-racing law, more than 1,000 motorists have been charged under the act, the Metro newspaper in Toronto has reported.The new law introduces harsh penalties such as license suspension or the potential impoundment of a vehicle for a week if motorists are caught traveling more […]

2 min read

What’s New: In Brief (October 31, 2007)

The severity of the insured losses from the 2007 California wildfires will not likely have a significant impact on the earnings of U.S. property and casualty insurers rated by Moodys.These wildfires have the potential to be the costliest wildfires in history, and they are in the running as the largest catastrophe event impacting U.S. carriers […]

2 min read

Shipping agents warned about fraudulent e-mails leading to cargo release

SHIP agents are increasingly faced with attempts to obtain delivery of cargo using forged emails, according to the International Transport Intermediaries Club (ITIC). “Fraud in shipping is endemic, cargoes are valuable, and it has never been easier to forge documents, electronic communications, bills of lading, etc, the ITIC notes in a statement. Carriers and their […]

1 min read