Claims

Local M&A activity heats up in the claims industry

Independent adjusting firm Crawford & Company (Canada), Inc. has acquired Cherrie Griffith Ltd., a provider of risk and claims services in the Ottawa region for more than 10 years. The acquisition was the second in two months within the claims industry, as full-service contractor Woodhouse Group Inc. announced last month that it had acquired restoration […]

By Jason Contant | July 3, 2018

3 min read

Claims

Finding Fault with Data

Blameworthiness or liability in any crash involving a vehicle equipped with self-driving technology will continue to be the main roadblock to the effective implementation and adoption by consumers of autonomous vehicle (AV) technology. The question is: How do you determine liability when the data supplying the clues is being interpreted and stored in proprietary systems […]

July 3, 2018

1 min read

Claims

Contractors know their role: Restoration contracting firms speak out

Controversy has swirled around the property and casualty industry’s response to Ontario’s May 4 windstorm, with restoration contracting firms speaking out to Canadian Underwriter recently to confirm the proper role of contractors during the catastrophe event. Restoration contracting firms made it clear to Canadian Underwriter that the reputation of the contracting industry should not be […]

By Jason Contant | July 3, 2018

3 min read

Claims

Violent storms leave thousands without power in Quebec

MONTREAL – More than 15,000 homes and businesses in Quebec were still without power and air conditioning this afternoon following violent storms. As of 2 p.m., 15,234 Hydro-Quebec customers were blacked out, mainly due to fallen trees and branches on power lines. About 8,000 of the outages were in the Laurentian region north of Montreal […]

By Jason Contant | July 3, 2018

1 min read

Why homeowners are happy with their insurers despite rate increases

Despite rising premiums, homeowners’ satisfaction with their insurance providers has increased for the third consecutive year, according to the J.D. Power 2018 Canada Home Insurance Study. The survey, released on Thursday, rated overall satisfaction at 786 on 1,000-point scale. Homeowners in the Quebec region are the most satisfied with their home insurance company, with an […]

2 min read

What happens when your mechanic gives you insurance advice

After following up on their mechanic’s suggestion to file a retroactive insurance claim, a B.C. couple is now on the hook for an $800.75 repair job to their 2010 Toyota Prius. Blenda and Raymond Pilon made an auto insurance claim after the headlights of their Prius were damaged due to the effects of a heavy […]

2 min read

Traffic stop “perfectly legal,” Ontario appeal court rules in impaired driving case

TORONTO – A man found to have been driving drunk has been convicted even though the police officer who stopped him was looking for another suspected impaired driver. In a ruling setting aside two lower court decisions, Ontario’s top court ruled the traffic stop that netted Jordan Gardner was perfectly legal. “Both the (lower court […]

3 min read

Priority dispute in mechanic test-drive case could reach top court

A priority dispute between Ontario auto insurers over who should pay accident benefits to a mechanic injured while test-driving a customer’s car could be headed to Canada’s highest court. Auto repair shop owner Jing Hua Fan was hurt in 2011 while test-driving a customer’s vehicle. He claimed accident benefits with The Dominion of Canada General […]

3 min read

Wildfire evacuees to return to Southend, Saskatchewan

SOUTHEND , Sask. – Residents who had to leave their remote community in northern Saskatchewan because of a wildfire are being allowed to return. The wildfire was growing last week and was 13 kilometres away when an evacuation was ordered for people living in Southend, about 600 kilometres northeast of Saskatoon. A wildfire operations spokesman […]

2 min read

Insurance lawyer questions whether LAT has ‘appearance’ of fairness

An anonymous letter about how an auto injury claim was handled by the Ontario License Appeal Tribunal raises “concerns” about the LAT decision-making process, an insurance lawyer warns. Anonymous evidence should generally not be given any weight in court proceedings, Lisa Armstrong, a lawyer with Strigberger Brown Armstrong, said in an email to Canadian Underwriter. […]

3 min read