People love their smartphones. And even those who claim they don’t still spend hours using them every day. A study last year by cybersecurity company NordVPN found 66% of Canadians even use their phones while in the washroom. I’ve always wondered what someone’s price would be to stop texting forever. In late 2022, I posted […]
By Phil | February 22, 2023
3 min read
Stoneridge Insurance Brokers (SIB) has expanded its P&C business on both coasts, with its acquisition of Eisenhauer Insurance Inc. in the Maritimes and Asset Insurance Brokers in western Canada. Plus, SIB’s CEO says the brokerage is in the process of closing two more transactions — for a total of four so far in 2023. […]
By Alyssa DiSabatino | February 17, 2023
2 min read
Westland Insurance continues its expansion across Canada with acquisition of Quebec-based Niche Assurance Inc. and Saskatchewan-based Heritage Insurance, effective Feb. 1. The latest acquisitions come a month after industry veteran Doug Morrow joined Westland as its new vice president of commercial insurance for Alberta. Morrow joined Westland following its acquisition of Edmonton-based RiskTech Insurance Services. […]
By Jason Contant | February 15, 2023
2 min read
Adopting an Application Programming Interface (API) solution for broker-carrier connectivity will significantly reduce errors and save brokers between 11% and 17% of effort during the quoting process, according to a white paper released Tuesday by Insurance Brokers Association of Canada (IBAC). In personal lines quoting, a test of API performance suggested a “significantly increase[d] accuracy […]
By David Gambrill | February 14, 2023
3 min read
One Canadian company is taking a unique approach to deal with repetitive data entry, a major pain point for brokers. Vancouver-based Quandri uses software bots to automate certain portions of a brokerage’s operations, such as the renewal review process. Quandri co-founder and CEO Jackson Fregeau (who founded the company with his brother Jamieson) told Canadian […]
By Jason Contant | February 13, 2023
4 min read
Quebec’s broker association has built a new online quote aggregator system by brokers for brokers. “Some insurance companies would call it an aggregator, but I would say it’s more like an online rocket,” said Mathieu Brunet, vice president of MP2B Assurance and past president of the Quebec broker association, Regroupement des cabinets de courtage d’assurance […]
By David Gambrill | February 10, 2023
2 min read
Industry veteran Paul Martin has been appointed as chief operating officer of Lawrie Insurance Group. Previously, Martin was president and COO of KRG Insurance Brokers for more than 40 years — a position he maintained when KRG merged with RRJ Insurance Group. “We are thrilled to have Paul join the Lawrie Insurance Group team to […]
By Alyssa DiSabatino | February 7, 2023
1 min read
Alberta-based Myrnam Insurance Ltd. is BrokerLink’s first acquisition of 2023. The deal expands BrokerLink’s presence in St. Paul, Alta., and surrounding areas. As a fourth-generation, family-owned business, Myrnam Insurance has been providing auto, property, business and farm insurance across Alberta since 1955. Myrnam Insurance professionals will continue to serve local community members as part of […]
By David Gambrill | February 7, 2023
2 min read
OTTAWA — Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem says that although a slowing economy may not seem like a good thing, it is when the economy is overheated. Speaking in Quebec City Tuesday, Macklem said that higher interest rates are working to cool the economy as elevated borrowing costs are constraining spending on big-ticket items […]
By Alyssa DiSabatino | February 7, 2023
2 min read
Can reinsurers transfer cyber risk to the capital markets? We may be close to finding out. Recently, two announcements about the issuing of insurance-linked securities (ILS) show there’s a potential to create a broader reinsurance source for cyber risk, said a new report from Fitch Ratings. “Capital markets solutions for cyber reinsurers present the potential […]
By Phil | February 3, 2023
3 min read