The Chronicle: Issue 2012-01, January 3, 2012

The Intersection: Insurance-Canada.ca BlogWhat's Going Through The Intersection of Insurance and Technology, an Insurance-Canada.ca Blog.

Policy and Product Management

LOGiQ3 Successfully Completes SSAE16 Soc I Type 2.
December 20, 2011 - The successful audit is a notable milestone in that it assures clients that LOGiQ3's business processes are designed and implemented to provide the controls required to properly manage their business. The attestation indicates that business processes, procedures and controls have been evaluated and tested by SAS 70 CPA, an accredited, independent third party.

Claims

IBC: Southern Alberta windstorms cost $200 million in insured damage.
EDMONTON, Dec. 22, 2011 - Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) reports that the estimated insured damage caused by windstorms that hit southern Alberta in November amounts to at least $200 million. This is a preliminary estimate reported by Property Claim Services Canada (PCS-Canada), a service that tracks insured losses arising from catastrophic events in Canada.

Marketing and the Market Place

Sun Life "Canadian Financial Checkup" survey finds more women than men are stressed by finances.
TORONTO, Dec. 21, 2011 - According to a new study released today, more than one-in-three Canadians (36 per cent) feel more stressed this year about their finances than they did a year ago. Forty-three per cent of women and 53 per cent of Canadians between the ages of 18 to 34 feel this way.

Canadian Insurance Top BrokerReach your clients and prospects within the Annual Technology Issue of Canadian Insurance Top Broker Magazine.

This important issue will feature a Special Technology Provider Roundtable, as well as a Technology Directory and Marketplace.

All sponsors of the Insurance Canada Technology Conference will be provided special discounted advertising rates.

For more information contact publisher Mia Williamson at miamwillliamson@rci.rogers.com.

Technology

SAS and TransUnion Create Unique Consortium Designed Specifically to Combat Financial Fraud.
Toronto, ON (13 Dec. 2011) - SAS Canada, the leader in business analytics software and services and TransUnion, a global leader in credit and information management, today announced the development of one of the first consortiums in Canada that will leverage anonymized credit file information, in conjunction with application and fraud data from participating financial institutions to greatly enhance fraud detection.

Eastern Shore Consulting: "A Little Courtesy - Please" by Bill Garvey.
December 12, 2011 - Maybe it's the season, but I do believe it benefits an insurer when they take the time to personally explain to software vendors why they had been eliminated during the search process. Vendors spend months, sometimes years, wooing an insurer. They don't expect to make every sale, but the better ones would like to know why they lost despite how painful the conversation. Advising a vendor by email may save time and the awkward conversation, but it doesn't help in the long run.

Gartner Says Second Half of the Information Age to Focus on Exploitation of Technology and the Information It Processes.
STAMFORD, Conn., December 15, 2011 - The Information Age is an 80 year wave of economic and societal change that is in its second half, where business value comes from exploitation of technology rather than from installation, according to Gartner, Inc.

Celent: Emerging Insurance Technologies.
December 19, 2011 - This inaugural version of the report, Emerging Insurance Technologies: General (P&C) Insurance Industry Edition 2011, bridges the gap between business and technology. It examines the technologies and system features that are changing the face of the insurance industry and links them to their predominant business benefits.

Our People

Standard Life appoints new CEO in Canada.
EDINBURGH, Scotland and MONTREAL, Canada, Dec. 19, 2011 - Standard Life has appointed Charles Guay to the role of President and Chief Executive Officer of Standard Life Canada, following an extensive search. He joins Standard Life from National Bank of Canada where he is currently Senior Vice President, Strategies, Marketing and Investment Solutions, Wealth Management; and President and Chief Executive Officer, National Bank Securities. Standard Life plc Chief Executive, David Nish, described Charles as "an outstanding candidate for the position." Mr Guay will be based at the Group's Canadian head office in Montréal.


Pitney Bowes Business InsightWebinar: Life Cycle and Trigger Based Marketing

Thursday, January 19, 12:00 noon - 1:00pm ET.

This live webinar with Jeffrey M. Nicholson of Pitney Bowes Business Insight will cover trigger-based marketing: defining and realizing the benefits.

Topics will include:

Click here for more details.

Consumer Information

TIRF Poll: Educate passengers about the involved risk of riding with a drinking driver.
OTTAWA, Dec. 19, 2011 - A new poll by the Traffic Injury Research Foundation (TIRF) reveals that almost 5 million Canadians admitted to riding with a driver who had been drinking any amount of alcohol in a thirty day period. The public opinion poll conducted in September 2011 investigated Canadians' behaviours and actions in relation to drinking and driving.

Ingle International: Travel Insurance Advisory: U.S. Hospitals Cracking Down on Foreign Patients.
U.S. hospitals, especially those in high tourism areas such as Florida and Las Vegas, are getting tough on foreign patients, demanding deposits for treatment services, and calling in debt collectors if bills are not paid on time and as submitted. This is no time to neglect travel insurance.

Manitoba Public Insurance: Top Five Frauds of 2011.
December 23, 2011 - A clumsy arsonist and a not-so-injured trucker were two fraudsters who unsuccessfully attempted to defraud Manitoba Public Insurance, which today released its annual list of Top Five Frauds. All suspicious claims are handled by Manitoba Public Insurance's Special Investigation Unit (SIU). The efforts of this special unit resulted in fraud savings last year of more than $9 million for Manitoba auto insurance rate payers.

Social Business

eMarketer: More B2B Marketers Embrace Social Media Efforts.
DECEMBER 21, 2011 - More business-to-business companies are using social media as part of their marketing mix. Some have found that sites for professional networking, like LinkedIn, are an effective way to generate leads, while more casual social media mainstays, such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, are helping B2B firms reach customers in new ways.

eMarketer: Marketers Look Beyond Social Media Experimentation.
DECEMBER 27, 2011 - Marketers are becoming more mature when it comes to their social media marketing, and many in the US say they hope to move beyond the experimentation phase in the coming years. In October 2011, at the second annual Pivot Conference, a survey found that 37.1% of marketers said their company will move beyond experimentation in social media marketing in 2012.

Reference and Statistics

ISO/PCI/Insurance Information Institute: P/C Insurers' Underwriting And Overall Financial Results For Nine-Months 2011 Show Deterioration Driven By Spike In Catastrophe Losses.
JERSEY CITY, N.J., December 27, 2011 - Private U.S. property/casualty insurers' net income after taxes fell to $8 billion in nine-months 2011 from $27.1 billion in nine-months 2010, with insurers' overall profitability as measured by their annualized rate of return on average policyholders' surplus dropping to 1.9 percent from 6.8 percent.

Managing Relationships and Customer Service

DALBAR Announces Genworth Financial Earns Life Insurance Service Award.
(Boston, MA December 19, 2011) - DALBAR announced today the 2011 winners of its annual Life Insurance Service Award. Genworth Financial was the only firm in the life insurance industry to emerge as a leader in customer service in 2011. For over two decades, DALBAR has conducted rigorous testing of service delivery and each year identifies those life insurance firms that were found to be above their peers in service to clients after a full year of rigorous testing.

from Doug:

We enjoyed a couple of trips to visit my Dad and Mother-in-law, both of whom live in the same city which makes visiting easier for us. Our two boys came along as well, probably enticed by the promise of some good food. We have read Christmas letters and notes with pleasure; so many people with whom we seem out of touch except through the annual Christmas missives. Now the new year challenges have begun, but with challenges come rewards (I hope).
I hope that you too have had a good end-of-year celebration and wish you the best in 2012. Perhaps we will even see you at our upcoming conference.

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