Issue 2008-03 -- January 22, 2008
This newsletter is for members of the Canadian Insurance Industry, and those who serve it. The newsletter is published weekly, and notes information mostly about the use of the Internet and related technologies in the industry. Some is international, where we feel it is relevant to Canada.
Distribution
Policy Works Helps Cooke Insurance Double Its Commercial Business.
Cooke Insurance Agency has carved out niches in construction, manufacturing and importing/exporting, as well as some specialty business programs ranging from the shellfish industry to seasonal cottages to hockey and skating arenas.
Though successful, Cooke Insurance was keen to grow its commercial lines business in an aggressive manner.
[Editor's Note: Kevin Cambell of Policy Works will speak at the 2008 P&C Technology Conference. Visit Policy Works' display to learn more.]
Universis Survey Reveals Advisors Want To Provide Client Portfolio Analysis To Almost 60% of Their Clients Versus 30% at Present.
TORONTO, January 18, 2008 - "Comprehensive portfolio analysis is a service traditionally provided only to top clients because it can be very time-consuming for advisors or their assistants," says Craig Allison, Product Manager, Practice Management at Univeris, the leader in enterprise wealth management technology.
Policy and Product Management
York Fire and Casualty uses iter8 Technology to Streamline Underwriting process.
York Fire maintains competitive edge by adopting iter8's automated exception-based underwriting technology. York Fire and Casualty Insurance Company, a subsidiary of Kingsway Financial Services Inc., recognized that in order to support the company's rapid growth major changes in underwriting were required. Manual processing needed to be phased out, and a flexible, user-friendly system needed to be brought in.
[Editor's Note: iter8 is a sponsor of the 2008 P&C Technology Conference. Visit iter8's display to learn more.]
Marketing and the Market Place
InsuranceWorks.ca adds Events Calendar.
InsuranceWorks.ca, Canada's Leading Insurance Jobsite, announces the launch of its insurance-specific Events Calendar. The InsuranceWorks.ca Events Calendar provides Insurance Professionals with a venue to easily locate interesting events near to their cities and workplaces across Canada.
Progressive signs 16-year deal for ballpark naming rights for home of the Cleveland Indians.
CLEVELAND - Jan. 11, 2008 - In March of 1937, Steve O'Neill was managing the Cleveland Indians, the team was at Spring Training in New Orleans and preparing for another season at League Park at Lexington and East 66th Street in Cleveland. At the same time, just a few blocks away on Euclid Avenue, two young Clevelanders, Jack Lewis and Joe Green, were starting a car insurance company known as Progressive.
3 Hidden Trends in 2008: eMarketer.
JANUARY 14, 2008 - Geoff Ramsey-CEO, Co-Founder - Business statistics can often reveal a great deal of information about a market or trend. A single number, like a picture, can be worth a thousand words. Take 9.3%. That figure represents eMarketer's prediction for the share of total US media spending going to the Internet this year (in 2007, the share was only 7.4%).
Managing Relationships and Customer Service
Johnson Inc. Recognized as the World's Top Customer Management Organization, as measured by CMAT(TM).
ST. JOHN'S, NL, Jan. 15, 2008 - Johnson Inc., a leading provider of home and auto insurance and group benefits, is pleased to announce that it was recently recognized as the world's top customer management organization by CMAT(TM).
The Harford Mutual Insurance Company Selects SunGard™s iWORKS Billing Solution.
Atlanta, GA - January 16, 2008 - SunGard today announced that The Harford Mutual Insurance Company has selected SunGard™s iWORKS Premium Billing Solution (PBS), an enterprise-wide billing system for the property and casualty industry.
Business of Insurance
Canadian Life and Health Insurers respond to competition panel consultation paper.
OTTAWA, Jan. 11, 2008 - The Canadian life and health insurance industry called for the Canadian government to redouble its efforts to negotiate and implement bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, and to take into account the impact of domestic policy in creating an environment that will enhance Canada's productivity and competitiveness in a fast-changing global economy.
United States Insurers to Pay $6.5 Billion in 2007 Catastrophe Claims, Says ISO's Property Claim Services Unit.
JERSEY CITY, N.J., January 14, 2008 - U.S. property/casualty insurers are expected to pay homeowners and businesses $6.5 billion for 2007 property losses from 23 catastrophes the eighth lowest cost in a decade and the seventh lowest frequency for the same period, according to preliminary analysis by ISO's Property Claim Services Unit.
Reference and Statistics
MIB Life Index Reports North American Life Insurance Activity off 2.0% in November.
Westwood, MA. - (January 3, 2008) North American application activity for individually underwritten life insurance declined -2.0% in November year-over-year, according to the MIB Life Index. Canadian application activity was moderately higher in November, up +4.2% year-over-year.
Claims
J.D. Power and Associates Reports: The Time it Takes to 'Get Things Right' Considerably Impacts Auto and Homeowners Insurance Claim Customer Satisfaction.
WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif.: 18 December 2007 - When filing an insurance claim, the time it takes to repair the damage has a major impact on homeowner and auto insurance customer satisfaction, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2007 Insurance Claims StudySM released today. The inaugural study measures auto and homeowner insurance customer satisfaction with the claims process by examining several key factors.
eBusiness and Technology
IT Governance in the Multinational Insurer: Report Published by Celent.
London, United Kingdom - 8 January 2008 - In a new report, IT Governance in the Multinational Insurer, Celent provides insight into the common ways of organising and measuring IT in global insurers. A perennial question for CIOs is how best to organise the IT department in order to support business both efficiently and effectively.
Document Automation Solution Vendors for Insurers 2007: Report Published by Celent.
New York, NY, USA - January 3, 2008 - As the document automation space has matured, there has been a convergence of functionality and features offered by vendors. This is a positive development for clients, but can make the selection process difficult. Insurers will need to answer some questions about their usage of a document automation solution before making a vendor choice.
Consumer Information
Damages caused by high winds -- Policyholder information from Insurance Bureau of Canada.
The Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) would like to advise residents affected by the recent high winds that most home and automobile insurance policies cover property damage caused by this type of meteorological event.
Saskatchewan proclaims snowmobile safety week.
In an effort to further promote snowmobile safety throughout the province, Minister of Crown Corporations Ken Cheveldayoff has proclaimed the week of Jan. 13 to 19, 2008, as Snowmobile Safety Week in Saskatchewan.
Manitoba Public Insurance's Top Five Frauds for 2007.
In its ongoing efforts to battle auto insurance crime and heighten public awareness, Manitoba Public Insurance has released its annual list of Top Five Frauds that passed through the courts last year.
from Doug:
A bit of a chill here the last few days was warmed - briefly - by a message from my kid brother who is in Mexico for a month with two chums, each with their own motorcycle. As he said, the Three Amigos are having a blast. Now if they could only send a blast of the hot air this way......