INSURANCE INDUSTRY NEWS

Beazley Launches Market's First Cyber Catastrophe Bond
Beazley, the leading specialist insurer, has launched the market's first cyber catastrophe bond. This is the first time that a liquid Insurance-Linked Securities (ILS) instrument has been created for cyber catastrophe risks. The bond is backed by a panel of ILS investors and was structured and placed by Gallagher Securities, the ILS arm of Gallagher Re. Read more.

Affordability Concerns Slowing Road To Electrified Future: Deloitte
As consumers become more flexible to changes in the automotive sector, concerns about cost and trust still impact advancement. In the U.S., a lack of affordability is the top concern consumers have when it comes to EV adoption. Read more.

Halwell Mutual, Applied Partner To Enable Real-Time Commercial Lines Rating
Applied Systems is pleased to announce a partnership with Halwell Mutual Insurance Company to enable real-time commercial lines quoting. CSIO commercial lines data standards and Applied's commercial quoting capabilities enable Hallwell's broker partners to automate the quote process for their small business owners and independent contractors across Canada. Read more.

Low-Code Development Technologies Market Set To Grow
The worldwide market for low-code development technologies is projected to grow 19.6% from 2022, according to the latest forecast from Gartner. A rise in business technologists and a growing number of enterprise-wide hyperautomation and composable business initiatives will be the key drivers accelerating the adoption of low-code technologies through 2026. Read more.

BrokerLink Acquires URS Insurance
BrokerLink is pleased to announce its acquisition of Ontario-based Universal Risk Solutions Inc. (URS Insurance), effective December 1st. This marked the 24th acquisition by BrokerLink in 2022. Read more.

Westland Insurance Acquires Assurances R. Legault
Westland Insurance, Canada's largest independent insurance broker, is pleased to announce it has acquired Assurances R. Legault, increasing its growing footprint in Quebec. Read more.

Profile: The Evolving Collision Repair Marketplace
The 16th annual white paper, A Profile of the Evolving U.S. and Canadian Collision Repair Marketplace, is now available from The Romans Group LLC. Read more.

MPI Releases Top 5 Frauds Of 2022
What do social media likes, multiple sets of keys and a laundry detergent container have in common? They all helped Manitoba Public Insurance's Special Investigations Unit uncover attempted auto frauds across the province this year. Read more.

Social Toxicity, Data Privacy, A.I. Forge The Future Of Marketing
As marketers face increased scrutiny over their operations, Gartner, Inc. has revealed its top five predictions that marketing leaders must incorporate in their strategies in 2023 and beyond to drive results and regain the confidence of business leaders. Read more.

Co-operators Financial Services Acquires Smart Employee Benefits
Co-operators Financial Services Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Co-operators Group Limited, has announced that it has entered into an agreement pursuant to which Co-operators will, indirectly through its wholly-owned subsidiary, acquire all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Smart Employee Benefits Inc. by way of a statutory plan of arrangement under the Business Corporations Act (Ontario). Read more.

Chubb Launches Business Unit to Help Combat Climate Change
Chubb is pleased to announce the launch of a new global climate business unit, drawing on the company's extensive technical capabilities in underwriting and risk engineering, that will provide a full spectrum of insurance products and services to businesses engaged in developing or employing new technologies and processes that help reduce the dependence on carbon. It will also provide risk management and resiliency services to help those managing the impact of climate change. Read more.

In the InsurTech Spotlight this week:

Alert Labs
Alert Labs designs and manufactures a suite of smart building sensors on the cutting edge of property protection. The sensors are easy to install and use, and they connect to a cellular network to provide real-time monitoring and 24/7 alerts with analytics to reduce property damage, repair costs and utility bills for residential and commercial properties.
Learn more.

Calling all InsurTechs! Click here to participate.

From Doug Thoughts on “What Pundits Miss on Independent Agents,” by Peter van Aartrijk (Jan. 5, 2023) for Insurance Thought Leadership. Growth: Peter notes that the number of US agencies increased by 10% (4,000) during the pandemic. More clarity would help. On one hand, he notes the growth of aggregators, suggesting that the number of owners is not being counted. On the other, does an agency with multiple locations/branches count as one or several? How did the Canadian broker community compare? Channels: Peter argues that the independent agency system is in fact many different channels separating large, multiline agents from small, niche agents; and commercial specialists from online-only agencies. Each is a different model. I agree that insurers need programs, support and tools that cater to the characteristics of each model. For now I will stick to a smaller number of distribution channels: • Broker; • Direct to consumer; • MGA (maybe); • Program; • Embedded. As insurance consumers change, as more data becomes readily available, as the way we communicate evolves and as technology enables a new and broader set of options, the way insurance products are sold and serviced will evolve. Channels will evolve too. Insurance is a vibrant community that is continually innovating and transforming. The crystal ball suggests an exciting decade in front of us. Doug Grant, CIP Partner Insurance-Canada.ca