What’s new: In brief (February 16, 2005)

The Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) says its “Injury Prevention Month” campaign in North Bay is progressing well. Events already staged include the official kick-off at a North Bay Skyhawks game, as well as a “Cars on Ice” demonstration by Bridgestone/Firestone, as well as a like snowmobile rescue staged at Trout Lake. This coming weekend, the “North Bay Safety Expo” will be staged at Northgate Shopping Centre. More on the events, including video footage, is at www.northbaysafetyexpo.com.

Mutual Concept Computer Group (MCCG), which is owned by Canada’s mutual insurers, has acquired London, Ontario-based Bralar Software Inc. The two technology companies have been working together for several years on MCCG’s IBS BackOffice 5 insurance system. “The acquisition of Bralar will provide us with complete control over the future development and maintenance of our software products by including in our software suite the generic decision-making too, the Bralar rules engine,” says MCCG president Dorin Mascan. Bralar president Brad Gawne joins MCCG’s management team as chief technology officer.

The Florida Insurance Council, which advocates on behalf of insurers in the state, is fighting back against US$1.1 million in fines levied against 91 insurers by the Florida insurance regulator. The FIC says the filing requirements relative to the resolution of claims from the 2004 hurricanes were “confusing and unclear”, and if insurers did not meet those requirements, “it was inadvertent due to the complexity and urgency of these requirements”. “We will have settled 1.6 million claims and paid US$22 billion when all is said and done, and we believe we are 90% of the way toward finishing our job,” the FIC states.