Westland Insurance continues to expand across Canada with its latest brokerage acquisitions in Alberta and Ontario. Westland announced Wednesday its acquisition of Excel Insurance Lloydminster and M. Butler Insurance in Ontario, effective June 24. “These acquisitions bring Westland into two new communities and represent Westland’s continued expansion across Canada,” the brokerage says in a press […]
By Jason Contant | July 3, 2024
2 min read
A trend whereby property and casualty (P&C) insurance brokerages acquire or partner with health insurance and investment product brokerages continues apace. Ancaster, Ont.-based StoneRidge Insurance Brokers (SIB) announced late last month it has partnered with All-Risks Insurance Brokers Ltd. All-Risks, based in Windsor, Ont., has operated for 70 years. It has 74 locations province-wide, offering […]
By Phil | July 2, 2024
2 min read
A former broker must wait one year before he can re-apply for his licence, after B.C.’s broker regulator found he had cheated on his CAIB 2 broker licensing exam in March 2021. The CAIB 2 broker’s licence exam covers commercial lines, including property forms, underwriting, additional coverage, transportation, crime and business interruption. Insurance Council of […]
By David Gambrill | June 25, 2024
2 min read
When I was about 10 years old, our local Pizza Pizza sponsored my soccer team. Our team jerseys also happened to be neon orange that year. Whether that was a chance stroke of luck or some plotted branding scheme, I’ll never know. But years later, I still remember those jerseys. In fact, between myself […]
By Alyssa DiSabatino | June 24, 2024
2 min read
Half of the premium volume generated by Canadian brokers comes from commercial policies on average, say respondents to Canadian Underwriter’s 2024 National Broker Survey. As for brokerage size, firms with 20 or fewer employees say 33% of their total premium volume comes from commercial business, compared with 58% at brokerages with 20-to-99 employees and 61% […]
By Phil | June 21, 2024
2 min read
One brokerage’s sales increased by 12% in six months after the company president shared sales numbers with the broker team for the first time. That data transparency changed the trajectory of his fifth-generation brokerage, Zac Sutherland, president of Sutherland Insurance, shared with attendees at the Young Brokers Conference in Niagara Falls earlier this month. “This […]
By Alyssa DiSabatino | June 21, 2024
2 min read
Collectivfide Insurance Group Inc. announced Monday it has entered into a partnership stake with Utter/Morris Insurance Brokers Limited, the 12th brokerage deal since the group’s 2019 inception. Collectivfide’s shareholders represent mutual insurance companies throughout Ontario and Canada. The latest broker partner in the Collectivfide network marks the second addition of 2024, following the acquisition with […]
By Jason Contant | June 18, 2024
2 min read
To protect their clients’ best interests, brokers may suggest more comprehensive coverage, even if it comes at a higher cost. But expect clients to see things through a different lens — price point. Conversations between brokers and their clients can quickly go off the rails when clients are skeptical about the cost of the coverage. […]
By Alyssa DiSabatino | June 17, 2024
3 min read
When it comes to investments that strengthen their brokerages, 74% of owners tell Canadian Underwriter’s 2024 National Broker Survey that money spent on product training and education produces results. That’s a substantial jump from 66% who called the practice beneficial in 2023’s survey. In 2024’s survey, product training was most popular with women brokers (77%) […]
By Phil | June 17, 2024
2 min read
Brokerage growth through acquisition in Canada proceeded at a torrid pace this past week. Large Canadian brokerages Westland Insurance Group and Acera Insurance Services Ltd. each announced new deals, while Navacord Inc. expanded two of its specialty brokerages in Canada’s capital region: Westland says its deal marks another milestone in the brokerage’s ongoing expansion efforts […]
By Jason Contant | June 14, 2024
3 min read