Global insured losses from natural catastrophes reached US$125 billion in 2022, the second consecutive year in which insured losses from NatCats exceeded US$100 billion, according to the latest sigma study from Swiss Re Institute. And it looks like this trend is here to stay. “Today, average annual insured losses of more than US$100 billion are […]
By Jason Contant | March 22, 2023
3 min read
Trisura has successfully defended a $475,000-plus claim against it after a B.C. court found a construction subcontractor couldn’t prove it had a formal contract with the principal contractor named in Trisura’s labour and materials (L&M) payment bond. “I…do not accept that I can infer a subcontract from the mere fact that the plaintiff [Wolverine Construction […]
By David Gambrill | March 22, 2023
3 min read
Some claims show obvious elements of fraud but others go above and beyond. Such was the case with Saskatchewan Government Insurance’s (SGI) Top 5 “eyebrow-raising” attempted auto insurance frauds from 2022. SGI released last week their Top 5 list of odd and unusual attempted insurance fraud claims. In total, the public auto insurer’s special investigation […]
By Jason Contant | March 21, 2023
3 min read
A recent Supreme Court of British Columbia case points to the difference between the standard of care for sports negligence claims in B.C. compared to the rest of Canada. In Miller v. Cox, the court found that a recreational soccer player was liable for more than $100,000 stemming from a “dangerous and reckless” slide tackle […]
By Alyssa DiSabatino | March 21, 2023
4 min read
The world keeps inching toward a dangerous climate threshold, but if swift action on greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions are taken in all sectors, including insurance, it’s possible to avert catastrophic warming, a new report said. There may be more opportunity for the industry to step up in several ways: from closing protection gaps, to […]
By Alyssa DiSabatino | March 20, 2023
3 min read
The Canadian cyber market in general has suffered some “pretty bad loss ratios in the last couple of years,” said Jack Bottomley, senior consultant for cybersecurity with KPMG in Canada. Not long ago, the industry saw its cyber loss ratio top 400%, meaning cyber insurers on average paid more than $4 for every $1 received […]
By Phil | March 20, 2023
3 min read
Parts of Canada have been hit with several major snowstorms in succession this winter, and while none of the severe storms individually will likely be declared catastrophes (i.e. resulting in more than $30 million of insured damage), they may be compounding to result in knock-on claims related to heavy snow loads and water-related damage, one […]
By Alyssa DiSabatino | March 17, 2023
3 min read
Most insurers are concerned about existing digital liability risks, but in as few as three years, they may be confronting commercial liability risks associated with immersive virtual environments known as the ‘metaverse,’ a Geneva Association (GA) survey of liability insurance experts has found. “According to our survey, most attention [of liability insurers] is currently concentrated […]
By David Gambrill | March 17, 2023
3 min read
EDMONTON — The Alberta and federal governments say they will work together to understand what happened around a nine-month delay in notifying the public about toxic seepage from an oilsands tailings pond. Alberta Environment Minister Sonya Savage and federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault reiterated a dual commitment to review information exchange processes and committed to […]
By Alyssa DiSabatino | March 17, 2023
3 min read
How does the industry make cyber insurance a viable and profitable line of business going forward? “I would say cyber is a viable and profitable business line,” said Neal Jardine, global cyber risk intelligence and claims director with Boxx Insurance. “I don’t believe cyber is broken. I believe it’s not sustainable if the approach to managing […]
By Phil | March 16, 2023
2 min read