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Catastrophes CatIQ Announcements CatIQ Connect

Canadian Insured Losses from Catastrophic Events Exceed CAN $3 Billion in 2023

Toronto (January 8, 2024) – The unprecedented frequency of catastrophic events experienced across Canada in 2023 pushed the insured loss total for the region to CAN $3.1 billion, according to CatIQ, Canada’s insured loss and exposure indices provider.

With total insured catastrophic losses exceeding $3 billion, 2023 was one of the largest loss years for the country; however, unlike the top three loss years, no single event dominated the industry losses.

Top loss years (adjusted for inflation):

  • 2016 – $5.9 billion
  • 2013 – $3.8 billon
  • 2022 – $3.4 billion
  • 2023 – $3.1 billion

Canada also experienced 23 events which generated insured losses in excess of CAN $30 million during the 12-month period – a record number for the country. These included the first-ever catastrophe declared in the territories due to the exceptionally active wildfire season across Canada.

Canada’s most impactful events of 2023 included:

  • Kelowna Wildfires in British Columbia
  • Ice Storm in Ontario and Quebec
  • Tantallon Wildfire in Nova Scotia
  • Flooding in Nova Scotia
  • Severe Storms in Ontario and Quebec
  • Winnipeg Hailstorm in Manitoba

Laura Twidle, President and CEO of CatIQ, said: “Last year was one for the record books – not in terms of the overall insured losses, but rather the total number of catastrophes which occurred during the period. In July and August, there were more catastrophes than Canada has previously seen in an entire year. The country is experiencing the increase in severe events firsthand, and collaboration across sectors is becoming more important to mitigate the impacts.”

These catastrophic events directly impact the public and require the (re)insurance industry, academia, and government to work together before, during and after each loss. To foster greater collaboration between key stakeholders, CatIQ, in partnership with MSA Research, will again host CatIQ Connect – Canada’s Catastrophe Conference – which will take place on February 6-7, 2024 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.

CatIQ Connect is a content-driven forum geared toward: 

  • Insurance/Reinsurance/Risk Transfer Professionals 
  • All Levels of Government 
  • Engineers/Restoration contractors
  • Academia/Researchers 
  • Risk Managers 
  • Other sectors/organizations dealing with resilience to catastrophes 

Speakers and Session topics for February’s event include: 

  • 2023 ‘Catastrophes in Review’ by CatIQ
  • Renewals Season Recap – The State of the Industry
  • Navigating the Rise of Secondary Perils
  • Wellness in the face of Disaster
  • Fireside Chat: OSFI on B-15
  • Modelling 101- Your Questions Answered
  • Tech Developments
  • Modelling 201 – Deep Dive on Wildfire
  • Incentive vs Uptake
  • CAT 2023 Feature Discussion
  • Updated from the Federal Government
  • Non-Traditional Reinsurance
  • Underwriting Spotlight
  • Inclusivity in Disaster Management
  • Earthquake: Raising Our EQ IQ
  • Climate Change and the Housing Market

To learn more about CatIQ Connect, to view the full agenda, and to register, visit https://connect.catiq.com/.

About CatIQ

Toronto-based Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. (CatIQ) is a subsidiary of Zurich-based PERILS A.G. and delivers detailed analytical and meteorological information on Canadian natural and man-made catastrophes. Through its online subscription-based platform, CatIQ combines comprehensive insured loss and exposure indices and other related information to better serve the needs of the insurance / reinsurance / ILS industries, public sector and other stakeholders. www.catiq.com. CatIQ was established in 2014 with the support of the overwhelming majority of the Canadian insurance and reinsurance industry and is widely recognized as the most reliable source of catastrophe loss information in Canada. CatIQ also partners with MSA Research to host the Canadian catastrophe conference, CatIQ Connect, connect.catiq.com.

— end — 

For more information, please contact: 

Laura Twidle | CatIQ | Tel: 1(416)368-1723 x1 | Laura.twidle@catiq.com | www.catiq.com 

Categories
CatIQ Connect

Registration for the Ninth Canadian Catastrophe (CAT) Conference has Opened

Toronto (September 7, 2023) – CatIQ is pleased to announce that registration for its ninth annual Canadian catastrophe conference, CatIQ Connect, is now open. CatIQ Connect will take place February 6-7, 2024, at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. The conference will kick off with a review of the catastrophes from 2023 and close with a forecast for 2024.

Canadian insured catastrophic losses are already over $2 billion in 2023 according to an early estimate from CatIQ. Impactful weather events are on the rise, and government and industry must look to implement solutions to mitigate the increasing cost of catastrophes.

CatIQ Connect is a content-driven conference designed to foster collaboration between sectors relating to resilience and recovery in the face of catastrophes. “Given the unprecedented number of catastrophes in Canada this summer, disaster management has never been more important. There were more catastrophes declared this summer alone than in any other entire year,” said Laura Twidle, President & CEO of CatIQ. “I’d like to thank our steering committee for putting together an outstanding agenda. We are looking forward to seeing everyone back in Toronto in February.”

CatIQ Connect is designed for:

  • Insurance/Reinsurance Professionals
  • All Levels of Government
  • Academia/Researchers
  • Risk Managers
  • NGOs
  • Other sectors/organizations dealing with resilience to catastrophes

The CatIQ Connect 2024 Agenda currently features 30+ expert speakers, with more to come. Session highlights include:

  • 2023 CATs in Review
  • Navigating the Rise of Secondary Perils
  • Underwriting Spotlight
  • Earthquake: Raising Our EQ IQ
  • Tech Developments and Claims
  • Updates from the Federal Government
  • Non-Traditional Reinsurance
  • Renewals Season Recap
  • CAT Season 2023 Feature Discussion
  • Fireside Chat: OSFI on B-15
  • Modelling 101 – Your Questions Answered
  • Wellness in the Face of Disaster
  • Modelling 201- Deep Dive on Wildfire
  • Incentive vs. Uptake
  • CAT Response Inclusivity
  • 2024: The Forecast Says?

Save $100 by registering early and save a further $100 per person by registering three or more at https://connect.catiq.com  

Once again, this year’s Steering Committee includes leading organizations concerned with adaptation and management related to Canadian catastrophes, including:

Jim Abraham
Past President and Fellow
CMOS
Glenn McGillivray
Managing Director
Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction  
Marjorie Brans
Global Catalyst
League of Intrapreneurs
Sharmalene Mendis-Millard
Director
Partners For Action
Patricia Davis
Branch Manager
Crawford & Company (Canada)
Ken Mok
EVP
Gallagher Re Canada
Caroline Floyd
Director
CatIQ
Chris Rol
Manager and Sr. Advisor, Climate Adaptation & Flood Policy
Insurance Bureau of Canada
Karen Francis
SVP
Guy Carpenter  
Gayatri Singh
Vice President
Swiss Re
Izzy Graham
Assistant Vice President
Aon  
Laura Twidle
President & CEO
CatIQ
Donna Ince
SVP & Chief Underwriting Officer, Personal Insurance
Definity Financial Corporation  
Rebecca Wagner
Associate Director, Meteorological Service of Canada
Environment and Climate Change Canada
Tinotenda Marova
Manager, Reinsurance
Wawanesa Insurance
Kyle Winston
Chair
CRU GROUP

To register for CatIQ Connect 2024, or to keep up to date on the latest announcements, visit https://connect.catiq.com.

About CatIQ

Toronto-based Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. (CatIQ) is a subsidiary of Zurich-based PERILS A.G. and delivers detailed analytical and meteorological information on Canadian natural and man-made catastrophes. Through its online subscription-based platform, CatIQ combines comprehensive insured loss and exposure indices and other related information to better serve the needs of the insurance / reinsurance / ILS industries, public sector and other stakeholders. www.catiq.com. CatIQ was established in 2014 with the support of the overwhelming majority of the Canadian insurance and reinsurance industry and is widely recognized as the most reliable source of catastrophe loss information in Canada. CatIQ also partners with MSA Research to host the Canadian catastrophe conference, CatIQ Connect, connect.catiq.com which will return to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre on Feb 6-7, 2024.

For more information, please contact:

Caroline Floyd, Director, CatIQ

connectcontact@catiq.com  

www.catiq.com

Categories
CatIQ Connect

Risk Management Professionals #ReConnect at CatIQ Connect 2023

Toronto, February 15, 2023 – The Canadian Catastrophe Conference – CatIQ Connect – returned to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre last week, February 7 and 8, marking the first in-person iteration of the event since 2020. More than 260 delegates were in attendance, representing stakeholders from the full spectrum of risk management in Canada, the United States, Czechia, and the United Kingdom.

Delegates arrived at the conference amid a financial and insurance landscape that looks substantially different to that of early 2020, with supply chain dilemmas, labour headaches and some of the most impactful natural disasters in Canadian history having dominated the past few years.

“This year’s CatIQ Connect was timely and on top of global issues as they were unfolding” said Julie Wright, Director of Partners for Action at the University of Waterloo, referring to the Turkey-Syria earthquake that occurred days before. “It was a great opportunity for our Partners for Action team to reconnect with stakeholders from across the country and the collaborations that emerge from those initial conversations will drive our work for months to come.”

CatIQ Connect sessions covered topics on climate change and risk modelling, inflation, earthquake, managed retreat, wildfire recovery, CAT adjusting, Indigenous communities and insurance, ESG, and the 2021 British Columbia floods.

“As Canada increasingly becomes a riskier place to live, work and insure, it’s clear we need to do more now to build and prioritize a culture of climate resiliency. CatIQ Connect provided a timely opportunity for leading climate experts to come together to propose and discuss solutions that will help better protect Canada and Canadians,” said Jason Clark, National Director, Climate Change Advocacy, Insurance Bureau of Canada. “We are entering a positive and unprecedented period of collaboration on climate resilience between the federal government and the insurance sector, especially as it relates to closing the flood protection gap. I’m proud of our industry for being a steadfast partner in making our communities safer and stronger.”

Nearly twenty organizations participated to support CatIQ Connect as sponsors or community partners, including Gold Sponsors Aon Impact Forecasting, CoreLogic, and KatRisk LLC. Other groups helping to promote the event included hazard modellers, reinsurance companies and brokers, as well as adjusters, restoration and emergency management firms.

The outstanding success of 2023’s event is a credit to the oversight of the conference’s exceptional steering committee. Members of the committee included:

  • Jim Abraham, President, Canadian Oceanographic & Meteorological Society
  • Marjorie Brans, Global Catalyst, The League of Intrapreneurs
  • Caroline Floyd, Director, CatIQ
  • Karen Francis, Senior Vice President, Guy Carpenter
  • Izzy Graham, Assistant Vice President, Aon
  • Glenn McGillivray, Managing Director, Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction
  • Hall Noble, Senior Manager CAT Response, National Catastrophe Claims, TD Insurance
  • Kelly O’Neill, AVP, Senior Natural Catastrophe Pricing Analyst, SCOR
  • Chris Rol, Manager and Senior Advisor, Climate Adaptation & Flood Policy, Insurance Bureau of Canada
  • Greg Smith, President, Canada, Crawford & Company (Canada) Inc.
  • Laura Twidle, President & CEO, CatIQ
  • Rebecca Wagner, Associate Director, Environment and Climate Change Canada
  • Shaun Walsh, VP, Head of Property & Exposure Management, Central Technical Unit, Aviva Canada Inc.
  • Kyle Winston, Chair, CRU GROUP
  • Julie Wright, Director, Partners for Action

CatIQ Connect will return to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre February 6 – 7, 2024.

About CatIQ:

Toronto-based Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. (CatIQ) is a subsidiary of Zurich-based PERILS A.G. and delivers detailed analytical and meteorological information on Canadian natural and human-made catastrophes. Through its online subscription-based platform, CatIQ, catiq.com, combines comprehensive insured loss and exposure indices and other related information to better serve the needs of the insurance / reinsurance / ILS industries, public sector and other stakeholders. CatIQ was established in 2014 with the support of the overwhelming majority of the Canadian insurance and reinsurance industry and is widely recognized as the most reliable source of catastrophe loss information in Canada. CatIQ also partners with MSA Research to host the annual Canadian catastrophe conference, CatIQ Connect, connect.catiq.com which will next run Feb 6 and 7, 2024.

About MSA:

Market Security Analysis & Research Inc. (MSA) is a Canadian-owned, independent and impartial analytical research firm focused on the Canadian insurance industry. Founded in 2003, MSA is the dominant provider of financial information relating to Canadian insurers. Its mission is to provide Canada’s insurance professionals with comprehensive financial information, analytical tools and rigorous research on a consistent basis. MSA Research is also the organization behind esteemed conferences such as the National Insurance Conference of Canada (founded 2007), CatIQ Connect (founded 2014) and InsurTech North (founded 2018). Through fostering industry thought leadership, MSA Research continues to prove itself as an invaluable provider of Canadian insurance information.

Media Contact:

Caroline Floyd

Director, CatIQ

Caroline.floyd@catiq.com

Categories
CatIQ Announcements CatIQ Connect

Canadian Insured Losses from Catastrophic Events Total CAN $3.1 Billion In 2022

Toronto (January 18, 2023) – Last year ended with a bang, with the east and west each recording their own catastrophe in the final week. The pair of events pushed the Canadian insured catastrophic losses over $3 billion, a mark that hasn’t been reached since 2016 when a wildfire devastated Fort McMurray, AB.

The 2022 total insured catastrophic loss of $3.1 billion lands the year in the top three loss years for the country. There were 15 events which incurred at least $30 million in insured losses and, notably, two events made up a substantial portion of the overall industry total – the May 21 derecho in Ontario and Quebec ($1 billion) and Hurricane Fiona in Atlantic Canada in September ($800 million).

Laura Twidle, President and CEO of CatIQ said, “There was an unprecedented number of catastrophes in 2022, including now two of the top ten events in Canadian history. As our exposure and severe weather frequency increase, we all must come together to find unique solutions to mitigate the impacts to extreme events.”

These catastrophic events, which directly impact the public, require industry, academia and government to work together before, during and afterwards. In addition to its role as Canada’s loss and exposure indices provider, Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. (CatIQ), in partnership with MSA Research, organizes a conference to foster such collaboration in Canada.

Countdown to CatIQ Connect 2023 

CatIQ Connect – Canada’s Catastrophe Conference – returns to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in 2023 on February 7 and 8. The premiere catastrophe conference focusing on concerns affecting Canadians, CatIQ Connect has welcomed hundreds of delegates to its online offerings since October 2020 and welcomes risk management professionals from across Canada and abroad to #ReConnect with their peers.

CatIQ Connect is a content-driven forum geared toward: 

  • Insurance/Reinsurance/Risk Transfer Professionals 
  • All Levels of Government 
  • Engineers/Restoration contractors
  • Academia/Researchers 
  • Risk Managers 
  • Other sectors/organizations dealing with resilience to catastrophes 

Speakers and Session topics for February’s event include: 

  • 2022 ‘Catastrophes in Review’ by CatIQ
  • BC Floods – Claims and Local Perspectives
  • Challenges in CAT Adjusting, Claims & Inflation
  • Federal View on Disaster Risk
  • Innovations in Canadian Flood Modelling
  • Modelling Risk in the Future Climate
  • West Coast Earthquake – The Known Unknowns
  • Sustainability, Resilience, and the Financial Sector
  • A keynote presentation from former Weather Network host and author Chris St. Clair

To view the full agenda, visit connect.catiq.com.

To learn more about CatIQ Connect, visit https://connect.catiq.com/.

About CatIQ

Toronto-based Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. (CatIQ) is a subsidiary of Zurich-based PERILS A.G. and delivers detailed analytical and meteorological information on Canadian natural and man-made catastrophes. Through its online subscription-based platform, CatIQ combines comprehensive insured loss and exposure indices and other related information to better serve the needs of the insurance / reinsurance / ILS industries, public sector and other stakeholders. www.catiq.com. CatIQ was established in 2014 with the support of the overwhelming majority of the Canadian insurance and reinsurance industry and is widely recognized as the most reliable source of catastrophe loss information in Canada. CatIQ also partners with MSA Research to host the Canadian catastrophe conference, CatIQ Connect, connect.catiq.com.

— end — 

For more information, please contact: 

Caroline Floyd

Director

CatIQ 

Tel: 1(416)368-1723 x2 

caroline.floyd@catiq.com

www.catiq.com 

Categories
CatIQ Connect

Registration for the Eighth Canadian Catastrophe (CAT) Conference has Opened

Toronto (September 15, 2022) – CatIQ is pleased to announce that registration for its eighth annual Canadian catastrophe conference, CatIQ Connect, is now open. CatIQ Connect will take place February 7-8, 2023 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.  The conference will kick off with a review of the catastrophes from 2022 and close with a forecast for 2023.

Canadian insured catastrophic losses have already exceeded $1.5 billion in 2022 according to CatIQ. Impactful weather events are on the rise, and government and industry must look to implement solutions to mitigate the increasing cost of catastrophes.

CatIQ Connect is a content-driven conference designed to foster collaboration between sectors relating to resilience and recovery in the face of catastrophes. “We are so excited to reconnect in person with the catastrophe management community and, once again, our steering committee has put together a phenomenal agenda,” said Laura Twidle, President & CEO of CatIQ. “The 2023 event will focus on collaboration, since we should all be working together to manage impacts from catastrophes and climate change; we want attendees to meet peers inside and outside their respective sector so they can take the next step in understanding and mitigating risk.”

CatIQ Connect is designed for:

  • Insurance/Reinsurance Professionals
  • All Levels of Government
  • Academia/Researchers
  • Risk Managers
  • NGO’s
  • Other sectors/organizations dealing with resilience to catastrophes

The CatIQ Connect 2023 Agenda features 40+ expert speakers. Highlights include:

  • 2022 CATs in Review
  • Atmospheric Rivers, Derechos and Other Scary Things
  • B.C. Floods – Local and Claims Perspectives
  • Claims and Inflation
  • Federal View on Disaster Risk
  • Has the Time Come for CAT Bonds in Canada?
  • Getting Out of Harm’s Way with Managed Retreat
  • Indigenous Communities and Insurance
  • Insurance Adjusting Challenges and Opportunities
  • Modelling the Future Climate
  • The Lytton Recovery
  • Weathering the Storm: Ensuring Good Mental Health in Your Workplace
  • West Coast Earthquake – The Known Unknowns

Save $100 by registering early and save a further $100 per person by registering three or more at https://connect.catiq.com  

Once again, this year’s Steering Committee includes leading organizations concerned with adaptation and management related to Canadian catastrophes, including:

Jim Abraham 2023 Co-emcee and President ClimAction Services Inc. Chris Rol Manager and Sr. Advisor, Climate Adaptation & Flood Policy Insurance Bureau of Canada
Marjorie Brans 2023 Co-emcee and Global Catalyst League of IntrapreneursGreg Smith President, Canadian Operations Crawford & Company
Caroline Floyd Director CatIQLaura Twidle President & CEO CatIQ
Karen Francis SVP Guy Carpenter  Rebecca Wagner Associate Director, Meteorological Service of Canada Environment and Climate Change Canada
Izzy Graham Assistant Vice President Aon  Shaun Walsh VP, Head of Property & Exposure Management, CTU Aviva Canada  
Glenn McGillivray Managing Director Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction  Kyle Winston Chair CRU Group  
Hall Noble Sr. Manager CAT Response, National CAT Claims TD Insurance  Julie Wright Director Partners for Action  
Kelly O’Neill AVP, Natural CAT Pricing Analyst SCOR Canada Reinsurance Company   

To register for CatIQ Connect 2023, or to keep up to date on the latest announcements, visit https://connect.catiq.com.

You can also follow CatIQ on Twitter at @CatIQ_Inc or through the hashtag #CatIQConnect.

About CatIQ

Toronto-based Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. (CatIQ) is a subsidiary of Zurich-based PERILS A.G. and delivers detailed analytical and meteorological information on Canadian natural and man-made catastrophes. Through its online subscription-based platform, CatIQ combines comprehensive insured loss and exposure indices and other related information to better serve the needs of the insurance / reinsurance / ILS industries, public sector and other stakeholders. www.catiq.com. CatIQ was established in 2014 with the support of the overwhelming majority of the Canadian insurance and reinsurance industry and is widely recognized as the most reliable source of catastrophe loss information in Canada. CatIQ also partners with MSA Research to host the Canadian catastrophe conference, CatIQ Connect, connect.catiq.com which will return to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre on Feb 7-8, 2023.

For more information, please contact:

Caroline Floyd, Director, CatIQ

Tel: 416-368-1723 x2

caroline.floyd@catiq.com

www.catiq.com

Categories
Catastrophes CatIQ Announcements CatIQ Connect

Canadian insured losses from catastrophic events exceed CAN $2 billion in 2021

Toronto (January 11, 2022) – 2021 saw much discussion of a ‘new normal’ for Canadians, but when it comes to insured losses, it seems that the new normal – where annual losses due to catastrophes exceed $2 billion annually – is already firmly established.

2021’s total insured catastrophic loss sits at a hefty $2.04 billion as of this release, landing the year in the top five loss years for the country. And with 14 events incurring at least $25 million in insured losses, the year also ties for second place in terms of number of catastrophes. Western Canada bore the brunt of 2021’s wrath, as fires, windstorms, and record-smashing flooding lashed British Columbia and the Prairies.

“Climate-related catastrophes in Canada are increasing in frequency and severity and impacting our communities like never before,” said Lisa Guglietti, EVP and Chief Operating Officer, P&C Manufacturing at The Co-operators.  “As an industry, we must collaborate across sectors to develop real action and proactive solutions that protect the financial security of Canadians, by focusing on preventing losses, increasing risk awareness, and investing in solutions and infrastructure that will help build long-term community resiliency.”

These catastrophic events, which directly impact the public, require industry, academia and government to work together before, during and afterwards. In addition to its role as Canada’s loss and exposure indices provider, Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. (CatIQ), in partnership with MSA Research, organizes a conference to foster such collaboration in Canada.  

Countdown to CatIQ Connect’s Catastrophes: Past, Present, and Innovative Paths Forward Webinar

CatIQ Connect – Canada’s Catastrophe Conference – continues in virtual format in 2022, as the in-person event remains suspended. Over the past year and a half, CatIQ has developed a series of quarterly webinars to focus on top-of-mind themes for all CAT stakeholders. Hundreds of delegates have participated in CatIQ Connect’s online format since October 2020.

The next of these events, scheduled to take place February 10, 2022, will feature in-depth commentary on the catastrophe landscape in Canada, reviewing 2021’s CATs in detail, analyzing the current state of the industry, and looking ahead to 2022 and beyond.

CatIQ Connect, is a content-driven forum geared toward: 

  • Insurance/Reinsurance/Risk Transfer Professionals 
  • All Levels of Government 
  • Engineers/Restoration contractors
  • Academia/Researchers 
  • Risk Managers 
  • Other sectors/organizations dealing with resilience to catastrophes 

Speakers and Session topics for February’s event include: 

  • 2021 ‘Catastrophes in Review’ by CatIQ
  • State of the Industry
    • Lisa Guglietti, EVP & COO, P&C Manufacturing, The Co-operators Group
    • Claus-Ulrich Kroll, President & CEO, Munich Re Canada and Temple Insurance
    • Matt Wolfe, President – Reinsurance Solutions (Canada), Aon
    • Moderated by Don Forgeron, President & CEO, Insurance Bureau of Canada
  • Government Spotlight
    • Laniel Bateman, Director for Climate Change Adaptation Policy, Environment and Climate Change Canada
    • Steve Mennill, Chief Climate Officer, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation
    • Vanessa Wen, Director, Strategic Policy Division, Public Safety Canada
    • Moderated by Amy Graham, Senior Market Underwriter, Vice President, Americas, Swiss Re
  • Building a Resilient Canada Report
    • Scott Vaughan, Chair, Expert Panel on Disaster Resilience in a Changing Climate, Council of Canadian Academies (CCA)
  • Incentivizing ‘Build Back Better’
    • Justin Pockar, Manager Customer Advisory Services, The City of Calgary
    • Moderated by Paul Kovacs, Executive Director, Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction
  • A keynote presentation on innovative insurance
  • 2022 Natural Catastrophes: The Forecasts Says?
    • Steve Bowen, Meteorologist and Head of Catastrophe Insight, Aon

Laura Twidle, Managing Director at CatIQ said, “The past two years have been nothing if not memorable catastrophe years for Canada. We are happy to have been able to bring together the catastrophe experts from different sectors to discuss the challenges they’ve faced, how they have overcome them, and what’s next.”

To learn more about CatIQ Connect, visit https://connect.catiq.com/.

Categories
CatIQ Announcements CatIQ Connect

Registration for CatIQ Connect’s October ’21 webinar now open

Toronto (September 14, 2021) – CatIQ and MSA Research are pleased to announce that registration is now open for the first of the Canadian catastrophe conference’s 2021/2022 online webinar series. The upcoming CatIQ Connect quarterly series will be held in October and December of 2021 and February and June of 2022.  

“Given the uncertainty of the global pandemic, we made the decision to continue the webinar series through June 2022,” said Joel Baker, CEO, of CatIQ and MSA Research. “The 2020/2021 series welcomed over 500 participants to the online format, with sessions covering everything from the latest in catastrophe modelling and risk systems, to the ways the pandemic forced leaps forward in claims adjusting technology.” CatIQ Connect is a platform where industry, all levels of government, and academia come together to discuss mitigation and adaptation strategies, technological advancements, and sector perspectives around natural and human-made catastrophe management.

Registration is now open for CatIQ Connect:  

October 14, 2021 – Cyber and the Connected World 

Session highlights for October 14: 

  • Cyber Insurance: Challenges, Opportunities, and the State of the Industry with Judith Branham, Managing Director, Aon, and moderated by Gregory Eskins, Managing Director, Cyber Product Leaders, US & Canada, Marsh Canada  
  • Tail Risks Arising from Our Interconnected World with Dr. Rachel Anne Carter, Director of Cyber at the Geneva AssociationJess Fung, Managing Director, North American Cyber Analytics Lead at Guy Carpenter, Scott Stransky, Managing Director, Head of the Cyber Risk Analytics Center of Excellence at Marsh McLennan, moderated by Jordan Brennan, Chief Economist and VP of Policy Development at the Insurance Bureau of Canada 
  • Communities in an Integrated World with Stephanie Rackley-Roach, Acting Director of Corporate Performance/CIO, City of Saint John and an EPCOR Utilities representative 
  • A keynote presentation on Systems Theory 

Save the dates for the full webinar series lineup

  • December 2, 2021 –Catastrophe Model and Technology Updates 
  • February 10, 2022 – Catastrophes: Past, Present, and Innovative Paths Forward 
  • June 9, 2022 – Sustainable and Inclusive CAT Management at All Levels 

As always, the conference Steering Committee brings together leading organizations concerned with adaptation and management related to Canadian catastrophes, including:  

Jim Abraham
President, ClimAction Services Inc.  
Tara Laidman
Program Director,  Flood Initiative & Telematics, Co-operators Group 
Lesley Baran
National Catastrophe Claims Lead, Wawanesa Insurance 
Glenn McGillivray
Managing Director, Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction  
Marjorie Brans
Director of Ecosystem Impact, School for Social Entrepreneurs Canada 
Natalia Moudrak
Managing Director, Climate Resiliency Leader, Public Sector Partnership, Aon 
Daryl Duke
Senior Vice President & Chief Underwriting Officer, Munich Re 
Chris Rol
Manager, Policy, Insurance Bureau of Canada 
Roberto Figueroa
Advisor, Climate Risk Analytics, Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation 
Laura Twidle
Managing Director, CatIQ 
Caroline Floyd
Assistant Director of Catastrophic Loss Analysis, CatIQ 
Rebecca Wagner
Associate Director, Meteorological Service of Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada 
Karen Francis
Vice President, Guy Carpenter  
Kyle Winston
Co-founder & President,  CRU Group Inc. 
Sean Hobson
Vice President, National Commercial Accounts, WINMAR 
 

To register for the October session, and to keep up to date on the latest announcements for future sessions, visit connect.catiq.com. You can also follow CatIQ on Twitter at @CatIQ_Inc or through the hashtag #CatIQConnect.   

Categories
Catastrophes CatIQ Announcements CatIQ Connect

CatIQ in the news

Insurance Business Canada’s Alicja Grzadkowska was among the media presence at CatIQ Connect’s February webinar, Catastrophes – 2020 Review, 2021 Preview. Her article, “Biggest Canadian catastrophes of 2020 reveal a significant rise in risk,” focuses on the 2020 CATs in Review presentation, given by our own Laura Twidle.

“The past year hasn’t just been a unique one in Canada due to the pandemic – it’s also been an interesting year because of the variety in severe weather we’ve seen, and the impact events have had across the country. Notably, 2020 was ranked as the fourth highest in insured losses since 1983.

During CatIQ Connect’s February webinar, managing director Laura Twidle outlined the major weather events from the past year, and while it may be hard for many of us to remember what exactly happened in January 2020 when we were living out the last few blissful weeks of our pre-COVID existence, the CatIQ database never forgets.”

Read the full article at Insurance Business Canada, here.

Categories
CatIQ Announcements CatIQ Connect

Countdown to CatIQ Connect’s Catastrophes: 2020 Review, 2021 Preview Webinar

Toronto (January 4, 2021) – Looking back, 2020 will go into the history books as both one-of-a-kind and the same old, same old. While a global pandemic paused many aspects of our lives, catastrophes gave us no reprieve. Natural catastrophe records were broken globally, including some right in our backyard. Though 2020 was a year of exceptions in many ways, it falls right in line with the past decade when it comes to Canada’s increasing trend of annual catastrophic loss.

Canadian insured losses from catastrophic events in 2020 were nearly CAN $2.5 billion – CatIQ 

The years where annual catastrophic insured losses were below $1 billion seem to be a thing of the past; 2020 went one further and surpassed $2 billion in the first half of the year. The two largest events occurred in the second quarter. The Fort McMurray ice jam resulted in a 1 in 100-year flood event and caused a staggering $562 million of insured loss in the spring, and the June 13th Calgary hailstorm which pelted areas of the northeast with tennis ball-sized hail became the costliest hailstorm on record for Canada at $1.3 billion. These catastrophic events, which directly impact the public, require industry, academia and government to work together before, during and afterwards. In addition to its role as Canada’s loss and exposure indices provider, Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. (CatIQ), in partnership with MSA Research, organizes a conference to foster such collaboration in Canada.  

CatIQ Connect, is a content-driven forum geared toward: 

  • Insurance/Reinsurance/Risk Transfer Professionals 
  • All Levels of Government 
  • Engineers/Restoration contractors
  • Academia/Researchers 
  • Risk Managers 
  • Other sectors/organizations dealing with resilience to catastrophes 

Session topics: 

  • 2020 ‘Catastrophes in Review’ by CatIQ
  • State of the Industry
    • Peter Askew, President & CEO, Guy Carpenter
    • Paul MacDonald, EVP, Personal Insurance, Economical Insurance
    • Monica Ningen, President & CEO, Canada and English Caribbean, Swiss Re
    • Moderated by Paul Kovacs, Executive Director, ICLR
  • The Future of Claims Adjusting
    • Bill Dietz, President Paul Davis Canada
    • Skip McHardy, EVP, CRU Group
    • Moderated by Christopher Bartlett, President of the CIAA and Supervisor – National Claims Management Centre, Crawford and Company
  • Impacts of the Supply Chain on the Insurance Industry
    • Darilyn Dorosz, General Manager, PDR Hail Team
    • Jim Gibb, Vice President, Installation Services, Peak Services
    • Ian McKay, AVP, National Accounts, Insurance Company Solutions, Verisk
    • Colin Young, AVP, JS Held
    • Moderated by Elizabeth Kepes, Claims Corporate Vendor Manager, RSA Insurance Group

With the in-person event, typically held in February each year, being suspended for 2021, CatIQ has developed a series of quarterly webinars to focus on top-of-mind themes for all CAT stakeholders. More than 330 delegates have participated since October in CatIQ Connect’s online format.

“Climate change is causing increasingly erratic and severe weather patterns across the globe and losses from secondary peril events are forecast to increase. The risk Canada faces from extreme weather is growing and the costs of natural catastrophes are rising,” said Dipika Deol, Swiss Re’s Head of Underwriting for Canada and English Caribbean. “Events like CatIQ Connect bring together all key stakeholders to discuss and develop the solutions that will protect communities against the impact of severe weather and increase resilience across all of Canada.”

Laura Twidle, Managing Director at CatIQ says, “We are happy to have been able to bring together catastrophe experts over the past year. As we all learned, mother nature does not sit back just because there is a pandemic. We must all continue to work together to prepare for a future with increasingly frequent extreme events.”

To learn more about CatIQ Connect, visit https://connect.catiq.com/

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CatIQ Connect

Registration for the first of CatIQ’s Connect Quarterly Webinar Series has opened. It will run online on October 14, 2020

Toronto, August 18, 2020 – CatIQ and MSA Research are pleased to announce that registration is now open for the first of the Canadian catastrophe conference’s online webinars. The upcoming CatIQ Connect quarterly webinar series will be held in October and December of 2020 and February and June of 2021.

“Given the uncertainty of the global pandemic, we made the decision to host an online quarterly series from October 2020 to June 2021,” said Joel Baker, CEO, of CatIQ and MSA Research “As we all know, catastrophes do not stop for a pandemic, and this year has already been memorable with the impactful Fort McMurray flooding and Calgary hailstorms.” CatIQ Connect is a platform where industry, all levels of government, and academia come together to discuss mitigation and adaptation strategies, technological advancements, and sector perspectives around catastrophe management.

Registration is now open for:

October 14, 2020 – The Financial Sector on Catastrophes & Climate Change

“This forum will examine how banks, insurers and institutional investors are subject to the evolving threat of physical climate change. For those working in the capital markets, the forum will provide practical guidance to limit risk that might otherwise prove challenging to the financial services sector,” says Dr. Blair Feltmate, Head, Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation, University of Waterloo.

The half-day will be capped off with a keynote discussion between Mike Pedersen, Chair of the Business Development Bank of Canada, and Blair Feltmate, Head of the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation. The pair will focus on the threat of physical climate risk, and how Canada’s banks can provide stability to the Canadian economy.

Session highlights for October 14:
Risks and Opportunities for the Capital Markets with Alyson Slater, Global Risk Institute. Moderator: Andrew Castaldi, PERILS AG

Innovative Insurance Strategies from Low to Middle Income Countries and How to Apply Them in Canada with Kathy Baughman McLeod, Adrienne Arsht–Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center, Atlantic Council. Moderator: Marjorie Brans, School for Social Entrepreneurs Canada

Evolving Perspectives on the Impacts of Physical Climate Risk for Canada’s Housing Sector with Steve Mennill, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. Moderator: Joanna Dafoe, Insurance Bureau of Canada

Save the dates for the full webinar series line up:
December 3, 2020 – New in Catastrophe Technology & Modelling
February 11, 2021 – Pandemic: One Year Later
June 10, 2021 – Collaborating to Mitigate Loss to Catastrophes and Climate Change

As always, the conference Steering Committee brings together leading organizations concerned with adaptation and management related to Canadian catastrophes, including:

Jim Abraham
President,
ClimAction Services Inc.
Caroline Floyd
Assistant Director of
Catastrophic Loss Analysis, CatIQ
Anthony Black
National Catastrophe Manager,
RSA Insurance Group
Karen Francis
Vice President,
Guy Carpenter
Marjorie Brans
Director of Ecosystem Impact,
School for Social Entrepreneurs Canada
Paul A. MacDonald
EVP, Registrational Insurance,
Economical Insurance
Michael Butler
Senior Business Development Manager-Commercial, ServiceMaster Restore
Glenn McGillivray
Managing Director,
ICLR
Andrew Castaldi
Representative Consultant,
PERILS AG
Dwayne Torrey
Director, Construction & Infrastructure, Standards, CSA Group
Lindsey Collins
Senior Catastrophe Analyst,
Aon
Laura Twidle
Managing Director,
CatIQ
Joanna Dafoe
National Director of Climate Change,
Insurance Bureau of Canada
Rebecca Wagner
Associate Director, Meteorological Service of Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada
Dipika Deol
Head of P&C Underwriting, Canada and English Caribbean, Swiss Re
Kyle Winston
Co-founder & President,
CRU Group Inc.
Dr. Blair Feltmate
Head, Intact Centre on Climate Adaption, University of Waterloo
Anna Ziolecki
Director,
Partners for Action