Issue 2003-19:   May 13, 2003

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.

Business of Insurance

The President of Industrial Alliance Presents The Company's Growth Strategy: To Become One of The Country's Five Largest Life Insurers.

"We believe that Industrial Alliance has the potential to become one of the five largest life and health insurance companies in Canada, able to offer a wide range of insurance products and financial services. This is a motivating objective, which we believe to be achievable from a business standpoint, realistic from a financial standpoint and stimulating from a personal point of view." This was the message conveyed by Yvon Charest, President and Chief Executive Officer of Industrial Alliance Insurance and Financial Services at the annual meeting of shareholders, as he explained the Company's growth strategy for the next few years. More at http://www.insurance-canada.ca/business/canada/IndAll200305.php

Canada Life Shareholders Approve Acquisition By Great-West Lifeco.

Canada Life Financial Corporation (Canada Life(TM)) shareholders today strongly endorsed the Great-West Lifeco Inc. (Great-West) offer to acquire all of Canada Life's common shares for a combination of cash and Great-West securities valued as at February 14, 2003, at $44.50 per Canada Life common share. More at http://www.insurance-canada.ca/business/canada/CanadaL200305.php

Life Insurance CFOs See a Bright Spot for M&A Activity Over Next 12 Months: Tillinghast.

Hindered by a lack of capital and unrealistic expectations from both sellers and buyers, it comes as no surprise that recent M&A activity has been relatively stagnant. Companies that formerly sought to grow their insurance business through mergers and acquisitions have been much less active. However, according to a recent Tillinghast – Towers Perrin (Tillinghast) survey of life insurance CFOs, many more companies are seriously considering M&A transactions in the near future than they have been in the recent past. More at http://www.insurance-canada.ca/business/canada/Tillinghast200305.php

Marketing Insurance and the Market Place

IBC Honours Disaster Prepared Communities.

Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) today launched the new, national Foundation for the Future program that recognizes the efforts of communities to manage exposure to natural disasters, extreme weather and weather-related events. At a ceremony in Vancouver today, Insurance Bureau of Canada President and CEO Stan Griffin also announced the first five communities to be recognized under the program. More at http://www.insurance-canada.ca/market/canada/IBCDPC200305.php

IBC Applauds Ministry of Transport Ontario Road Safety Legislation

"As a key road safety partner with the Ontario Ministry of Transportation, Insurance Bureau of Canada congratulates Minister Frank Klees for bringing forward a plan for further improving the safety of Ontario roads and highways," says Mark Yakabuski, IBC's Vice President, Ontario. More at http://www.insurance-canada.ca/market/canada/IBCMTO200305.php

Accenture E-Government Study Finds Ease, Engagement, Privacy and Protection are Top Priorities.

American Internet users have a strong interest in using government Web sites to complete many of the transactions they currently conduct off-line, and more Americans are online, e-savvy and exploring e-government according to a new study released today by the Council for Excellence in Government and Accenture. It finds that more than 60% of Americans who use the Internet are interested in using e-government for conducting activities such as filing a change of address, responding to a jury summons, renewing a driver's license, or obtaining a birth certificate or marriage license. More at http://www.insurance-canada.ca/market/other/AccentureEGov200305.php

Distribution

What to Financial Advisors Want? Advocis and Environics Team up to Find Out.

Advocis and Environics Research Group today announced that they will combine efforts to design and execute a comprehensive market research program about the Canadian retail financial advisory industry. This joint effort will position the two organizations as the "go-to" resources for anyone seeking insight around the evolution of Canada's retail-level financial advice industry. A study planned for this spring will measure advisor perception of mutual fund and life insurance companies. More at http://www.insurance-canada.ca/distribution/canada/AdvocisEnv200305.php

CSIO Insurance Portal Status Update

Week ending May 9: The number of brokers connected remains at 28. No other changes. CSIO indicates a lot is going on within their efforts and at the companies. ISI has hired Steve Peace to Project Manage their activities with the Portal Project. Facility User Acceptance Testing is moving along.

Consumer Information

ICLR unveils Canada's first disaster-resistant home: part of Emergency Preparedness Week education campaign.

One of the most common misconceptions among Canadians is that disasters usually take place somewhere else. In fact, natural disasters are occurring more frequently and with increasing severity, putting every Canadian at some risk. The annual cost of natural disasters to taxpayers and insurers is doubling every five to ten years. And the place in which we are most vulnerable is often the place we consider a safe haven - home. More at http://www.insurance-canada.ca/consinfohome/ICLRhome200305.php

Reference and Statistics

Life Insurers' Total Investment Return Falling: Conning.

Even with their bond-heavy asset mix, life insurers' total investment income was essentially flat from 1997 to 2001, according to a new study by Conning Research & Consulting, Inc. The study, "Investment Profile of the Life Insurance Industry: 2002 Edition," found that bonds continue to dominate life insurer investments. More at http://www.insurance-canada.ca/refstat/other/ConningLife200305.php

Policy and Business Administration

inreon Reinsurance Marketplace to be Discontinued.

inreon has announced the discontinuation of its online marketplace for the reinsurance industry. Since the launch of the platform, the volume of risks processed via the platform has shown consistent growth. However, the total number of risks transacted remained low compared with total market volumes and fell significantly short of targets initially set by inreon. More at http://www.insurance-canada.ca/poladmin/other/inreon200305.php

from Doug:

April showers in Toronto seem to have arrived in May this year, but the cool and damp weather serves to keep the flowers in blossom for a long while - they are beautiful. Enjoy the Victoria Day weekend.
Insurance-Canada.ca is a fun business with all the case study characteristics of a small business - marketing, management, people, value propositions, evolving with a new technology as the Internet becomes mainstream - lots of excitement and challenges. Are you taking advantage of our services to reach your market? More at http://www.insurance-canada.ca/advertise/advertise.php