What’s New: In Brief (August 11, 2009)

ICBC has been awarded more than Cdn$600,000 in damages and interest by the B.C. Supreme Court after a lengthy trial related to an insurance fraud ring. The Supreme Court ruled in Insurance Corporation of British Columbia v. Suska that a variety of frauds and vehicle conversions were committed when several vehicles were falsely reported stolen by the defendants. Other vehicles were dismantled or disguised with phony VINs for resale, according to an ICBC release. The events took place over several years prior to November 2004. ICBC faced many claims and lawsuits for insurance coverage and paid out amounts ranging between Cdn$6,000 and Cdn$59,000 per vehicle. The reasons for judgment can be found at http://www.courts.gov.bc.ca/jdb-txt/SC/09/10/2009BCSC1051.htm

First Service Brokers Ltd./Financial Services Brokers Ltd. in Concord, Ontario has been awarded the Gold Standard Broker certification. Gold Standard Brokers meet rigorous international guidelines for best practices in all aspects of broker management, according to a release. The process to become a Gold Standard Broker requires a third party operations audit of the following components of a broker’s office: • human resources;• information technology;• finance;• customer service; • organization capacity; and • producer/CSR activity. Brokers who achieve a score of 90% or better on their overall weighted audit are awarded the certification.