Operations

Brokers apprehensive about Aviva’s direction under new CEO: CU poll

Canadian brokers are playing a game of “wait and see” as they prepare for the arrival of Colm Holmes, Aviva Canada’s new president and CEO, a Canadian Underwriter poll suggests. Aviva Canada announced this month that Greg Somerville is stepping back from his role as president and CEO to become a non-executive director of Aviva […]

By David Gambrill | January 29, 2018

3 min read

Operations

Broker loses licence for preferred vendor kickback scheme

A B.C. broker has had his licence cancelled for five years after the provincial broker regulator found that he had participated in a kickback scheme involving a potential preferred vendor for the brokerage. Bhupinder Singh Atwal, assistant vice president at the unidentified brokerage, worked primarily in the new-home warranty division of the brokerage, but was […]

By David Gambrill | January 11, 2018

3 min read

Operations

Tax advice to small business: Double down on dividends

Brokers who co-own their businesses with family members should consider paying their children and spouses extra dividends before popping the champagne cork this New Year’s Eve. The federal government plans to expand the tax on split income (TOSI), which currently applies to business owners’ minor children, effective Jan. 1. Finance Minister Bill Morneau released Wednesday […]

By Canadian Underwriter | December 13, 2017

3 min read

Operations

Quebec, Airbnb reach agreement to collect lodging tax in the province

MONTREAL – Airbnb and the province of Quebec have announced what is being called a first tourist tax agreement on short-term rentals in Canada. Quebec Tourism Minister Julie Boulet and officials with the Canadian arm of the home-sharing platform made the agreement official today. Beginning Oct. 1, Airbnb will automatically collect and remit a 3.5 […]

By Jason Contant | August 29, 2017

1 min read

Economic growth blows past expectations in May, powered by energy industry

OTTAWA – Economic growth in the country blew past expectations in May, powered by the energy sector, raising expectations that the Bank of Canada will raise interest rates again this fall. Statistics Canada said Friday that real gross domestic product grew by 0.6 per cent for the month. Economists had expected an increase of 0.2 […]

2 min read

More than 200 Canadian military members to help police deal with B.C. wildfires

KAMLOOPS, B.C. – Hundreds of Canadian Armed Forces members will support the police response to devastating wildfires in British Columbia, bringing some relief to scores of exhausted officers on the ground. About 225 soldiers travelled on Thursday from CFB Edmonton to Williams Lake, where they will assist the RCMP with observation and reporting along access […]

4 min read

Two wildfires break out in British Columbia

VERNON, B.C. – The BC Wildfire Service is responding to two separate blazes that broke out on Tuesday, including one that has prompted an evacuation alert. A fire in the north Okanagan, northwest of Lumby, was fanned by high winds and officials say it has now charred as much as eight hectares of trees and […]

1 min read

DDoS attacks grew shorter, more complex and persistent in Q1 2017, new report suggests

Distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks in the first quarter of 2017 were growing shorter, more complex and persistent, according to a new report released on Monday. Redwood Shores, Calif.-based Imperva released on Monday its 2017 Q1 Global DDoS Threat Landscape Report, analyzing more than 17,000 network and application layer DDoS attacks (3,457 network layer […]

2 min read

Massive 2013 oil spill in North Dakota still not cleaned up

BISMARCK, N.D. – Three years and three months later, a massive oil spill in North Dakota still isn’t fully cleaned up. The company responsible hasn’t even set a date for completion. Though crews have been working around the clock to deal with the Tesoro Corp. pipeline break, which happened in a wheat field in September […]

By Jason Contant | December 18, 2016

4 min read

Program allows travellers to pay emergency medical expenses in real-time, no out-of-pocket expenses: Allianz Global Assistance

Customers who purchase a travel insurance plan included in a new limited program from Allianz Global Assistance Canada will be able to pay for emergency medical help while travelling without paying out of pocket. A first in Canada, the solution will “allow for payment of eligible outpatient medical expenses in real-time, eliminating any out-of-pocket expenses […]

2 min read