With doctors across the U.S. planning or having already walked out over increased medical malpractice insurance costs, rating agency Fitch says such action could turn into a credit concern for hospitals.Fitch’s suggestion is the latest step in a growing crisis, which has seen doctors walk of the job in several states, most recently with 800 […]
By Canadian Underwriter | February 3, 2003
2 min read
Accountants have become “human pinatas” following recent corporate scandals, television business analyst Dierdre McMurdy said at the a recent luncheon of the Canadian Insurance Accountants Association (CIAA). While the impact of new public accounting rules, including Ontario’s Bill-213, “remain to be seen”, McMurdy is adamant. “You just can’t legislate integrity. There is a focus now […]
January 31, 2003
1 min read
General Electric, parent of Employers Reinsurance Corp. (ERC), says is will launch a US$5 billion global financing initiative.The move is in response to expected lower earnings in 2002, mainly due to losses in the company’s insurance operations.At then end of 2002, GE took charges for ERC and GE Capital Corp., towards which the financing will […]
By Canadian Underwriter | January 21, 2003
1 min read
Government-run Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) is reporting solid results for the third quarter 2002, but is casting doubts about the future.While net income was up for the nine-month period ending November 30, 2002, to $23 million from just over $11 million reported a year earlier during the same period, claims costs are also on the […]
By Canadian Underwriter | January 16, 2003
2 min read
For the first time in five years, auto thefts rates have dropped in Manitoba, says the province’s public insurer. According to Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI), 2002 says 7.827 theft claims filed, 6,190 of which were in Winnipeg.MPI speculates that the drop could be the result of 2002 being the first year of operations for the […]
By Canadian Underwriter | January 8, 2003
2 min read
An appeal from World Trade Center (WTC) leaseholder Larry Silverstein will be heard by a U.S. federal appeals court. Silverstein is challenging a ruling by U.S. District Court Judge John Martin which said that for those insurers covering the WTC under the “Wilprop” form, the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks would be considered one occurrence.The […]
By Canadian Underwriter | January 7, 2003
2 min read
Most of the insurance industry’s losses due to catastrophes last year were the result of windstorms and floods, says a new study from Munich Re. A full 98% of natural catastrophe payouts went to such losses, the reinsurance giant calculates.The European floods last summer constituted the worst of the cats, leading to about US$3 billion […]
By Canadian Underwriter | January 3, 2003
2 min read
U.S. insurers brought home a taxed profit of US$9.3 billion for the first nine months of this year compared to a net loss of US$2.6 billion reported for the same period a year ago. The turnaround largely resulted from higher premium volumes achieved over the nine months with the industry’s overall underwriting loss plummeting on […]
By Canadian Underwriter | December 17, 2002
2 min read
Despite hardening prices, the reinsurance industry continues to be dragged down by the lack of capital and prior years’ claims development, according to rating agency Standard & Poor’s.In its 2003 Global Reinsurance Outlook, S&P says that while some companies are benefiting from price increases, a large part of the industry remains in a troubled state. […]
By Canadian Underwriter | December 5, 2002
1 min read
The U.S. Congress has finally put the seal on a terrorism legislation package, approved by both the House and Senate and signed into law by president George Bush. The “Terrorism Reinsurance Act” sets up excess coverage for terrorism losses wherein insurers will pay a deductible equal to 7% of the previous year’s direct written premiums. […]
November 30, 2002
2 min read