With gold hovering around $1700 an oz., a client recently had some jewellery reappraised.  To his surprise, the gold bracelet purchased some years ago for $1,000 was now valued at $5800. To many of us, that is good news: a luxury buy that appreciates in value!  But of course petty thieves and break-and-enter types know  more...

Insurance is an unusual purchase – we buy it hoping to never use it. But insurance on assets and against legal liability provides a degree of financial certainty in the very uncertain, and unpredictable, world of risk. That is best evidenced – and most appreciated – when the unthinkable happens! Every week, we are supporting  more...

The policyholder Hubert Thomas was described by the court as an “an elderly gentleman with very limited formal education”.  Shortly after Christmas 2007, Thomas’ home sustained fire damage resulting from a wood-burning stove. What made a bad situation much worse is this: although he had purchased an insurance policy, the insurer refused to pay the  more...

We’ve heard it from advertisers for years: using a specific product will make you look younger, feel happier, express more confidence, __________________(you fill in the blank)… But some recent cases have caused advertisers to be more cautious about stating what their products will do. Example #1: in September, Reebok agreed to pay $25 million in  more...

The work-life of an insurance underwriter: working in cramped cubicles in dimly-lit office towers in Toronto, carefully sifting through risk data, local fire-fighting ratings, and dusty manuals to find ways of charging more money to insure your home. Whimsical caricatures aside, the underwriter’s task – trying to insure homes that are unlikely to have claims  more...

The most radical changes to vehicle insurance in a decade took effect in Ontario September 1st – and most motorists are unaware. For the first time ever in this province’s history, government-mandated changes have reduced coverage on every auto policy. In a recent Leger Marketing survey commissioned by RSA Canada, only 2% of those surveyed  more...

It’s a fact: fraud costs in Ontario vehicle insurance dramatically exceed that of any other part of the country. And Ontario drivers are paying heavily for that dubious distinction. It is calculated that of Ontario’s $9 billion in annual auto premiums, $1.3 billion is paid out on suspected fraudulent claims –  and not for glass  more...

Some observers are scornfully characterizing the process as a shell game: Ontario motorists are being told that they are being given more choice, but after September 1, 2010 many will pay more premium for potentially serious reductions in coverage. The government’s automobile insurance regulator is reporting that 2010 Q2 automobile average rates decreased by 1.03%  more...

So far, 2010 has seen an exceptionally large number of global natural catastrophes taking lives and damaging vital infrastructure.  And for most of us, this news is so common, we’ve largely forgotten the dimensions of each tragedy. According to industry definition, the first half of 2010 saw 440 catastrophic events around the globe.  Losses of  more...

“Summer is a time when a lot of people go on vacation, and criminals know that, too,” says Const. Isabelle Cotton of the Toronto Police Service. “They are looking for those houses where there are no lights and the drapes are down. Make sure your place looks like someone is living inside.” In most cases,  more...