It does happen.  And when it does, it’s a major financial migraine for policyholders. During the 2008 financial meltdown, large global powerhouse insurers were brought to their knees, requiring financial assistance from the government to get them off life-support.  (Remember AIG in the US; ING in the Netherlands?) Although the Canadian insurance industry was largely  more...

After intercepting “test run” packages in September, American security officials predicted that Yemen-based terrorists would attempt to send packaged bombs to the U.S. by way of commercial aircraft. That sombre prediction proved accurate with the discovery of Chicago-bound packaged bombs a week ago, in cargo aircraft in Dubai and the UK. Proof: terrorism continues to  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...

Everybody is aware of the growing tide of identity theft. But this is surprising to many: professional identity theft is running rampant in the healthcare industry.  One insider called it “the cancer that we’re fighting every day”. Here’s how it works: a fraudster uses the name and professional registration number of a physician, chiropractor or  more...

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed Bill 1871 into law last week – and some drivers are ecstatic! The bill allows state vehicle owners to rent out their cars to strangers without violating the conditions of their vehicle insurance policies. (Like Ontario, California vehicle standard policies preclude the renting of private passenger vehicles.) And effective September  more...

We’ve heard lots of media noise about Ontario’s new auto insurance reforms – more cost, less coverage. But if you are interested in more light and less heat, consider 3 critical messages needing to receive some airplay: 1. Rapidly rising medical costs: Car insurance premiums are not just about repairing glass and metal. Almost half  more...

Ever since Ferdinand Porsche developed the world’s first gasoline-electric vehicle in 1900 (pictured), manufacturers have toyed with the concept of using alternate energy sources to drive gasoline-powered cars. But the hybrid gas-electric vehicle did not become widely available until the Toyota Prius was introduced into Japan in 1997. Once the novelty of the eco-conscious driver,  more...

The FIFA 2010 World Cup of Soccer involves over 700 athletes from 32 nations…and a staggering $9+ billion in total insurance coverage. The event is historic in that South Africa is hosting the event for the first time on the African continent. Only 20 years ago, South Africa’s apartheid practice caused it to be banned  more...

As the global financial catastrophe continues to unfold 18 months after it started (and 1 year after the massive American meltdown – think AIG, Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac), one has to wonder: what have we learned? More specifically, to what reasonable standard do we hold our financial institutions, in the managing  more...

Next month marks a dubious anniversary – one year since the US subprime financial meltdown reached a climax, at least in terms of public consciousness.  September 2008 saw daily headlines of announcing the failure or near-failure of: Merrill Lynch (emergency takeover by Bank of America); the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers (the largest in US history);  more...