Risk Management (February 01, 2010)

COMMERCIAL PREMIUMS DROP IN 2009 Q4: RIMS SURVEY

Premiums continued to tumble for commercial insurance buyers in 2009 Q4, with few signs that the soft phase of the pricing cycle is nearing the end, according to the RIMS Benchmark Survey.

The survey, administered by Advisen Ltd., tracks changes in insurance policy renewal prices as reported by North American corporate risk managers.

Directors and officers’ liability and general liability posted decreases in average premiums, while property held steady again.

General liability saw the largest decrease, with average declines in renewal premiums of 5%.

Average D&O premium fell 2.8%.

Property remained relatively unchanged, falling less than half a percentage point, according to the survey.

“While market conditions are benefiting insurance buyers, they are contributing to growing financial stress on agents and brokers that derive much of their income from commissions on insurance premiums,” according to a release.

H1N1 IMPACT COMPARABLE TO ONTARIO’S 2003 POWER OUTAGE

The impact of H1N1 and seasonal flu on hours lost at work was comparable to that of the Ontario-U. S. power outage in August 2003, Stats Can reported in a recent study.

About 1.5 million employed people aged 15 to 69 reported they were absent from work in November 2009 as a result of the H1N1 or seasonal flu, representing 9% of workers in that age group.

On average, workers absent as a result of H1N1 and seasonal flu lost 19.6 hours of work each, for a total of 29.5 million hours lost. Including overtime hours to make up for lost time, the net effect of the H1N1 and seasonal viruses in November 2009 was a loss of 20.9 million hours.

In comparison, the 2003 power outage cost 2.4 million workers in Ontario and Quebec a total of 26.4 million hours of work time. Including 7.5 million overtime hours, the net effect was a loss of 18.9 million hours.