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Friendly Reminder |
General Insurance
Agents and Insurance Adjusters
in Quebec are reminded that they must
have all of their PDUs in place by December 31 this
year.
If you need credits, including compliance credits for
ChSF, please contact us today or check out our course
catalogue at www.ilscorp.com.
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ilscorp.com Book Exchange |
It's never too early
to start putting some money aside for a rainy day …
or for the impending holiday season, pricey vacations
or even something small like a retirement fund.
Make the most out of your Canadian insurance textbooks
by buying, selling, swapping, bartering, trading or
donating them. ilscorp.com is pleased to offer a free
insurance textbook sales area for anyone who has a textbook
they don’t mind parting with and for those who
are looking for a bargain price.
Come check out the Book Exchange Forum at this link:
ilscorp
book exchange
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Industry Briefs |
Canada Revenue
Agency issues alert about e-mail scams
Earlier this month the Canada Revenue Agency released
a warning to consumers regarding unsolicited e-mails
supposedly from the federal agency.
The CRA says correspondence with taxpayers is traditionally
done through letter mail and not through e-mail.
Anyone who receives an e-mail from CRA should delete
the link and report suspicious e-mails to Phonebusters,
an anti-fraud call centre run by the Ontario Provincial
Police and the RCMP.
In January, the federal agency issued a similar warning
about a scam that sought bank account numbers and passwords.
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Canadian mortgage insurance market quickens
The Canadian mortgage insurance market was a duopoly
between the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corp., set
up by the federal government in 1946 and Genworth Financial,
an American company doing business in Canada since 1995.
However, regulations were changed in 2006, allowing
more companies – including U.S.-based companies
– to enter the market. Among those American providers
who are now operating in Canada are AIG United Guaranty,
PMI Group and Triad Guaranty Insurance. MGIC Investment
Corp., another U.S.-based mortgage insurer has applied
to enter the Canadian market as well.
Mortgage insurance protects the lender against default
and is currently necessary for homebuyers who cannot
afford the 20 percent downpayment usually required in
Canada.
According to CMHC, between 45 to 55 percent of borrows
have mortgage insurance due to lower downpayments.
Today, a strong economy, high employment levels, sustained
income growth and relatively low interest rates have
helped Canada become the world's number two mortgage
insurance market.
With more foreign-insurers entering the market, the
competition could get stiff. The longer amortization
periods offered by lenders are attractive to many buyers
though most experts agree that the best for a homebuyer
is to pay off their mortgage as soon as possible.
By the end of 2004, the CMHC said it was insuring nearly
$244 billion in outstanding mortgage loans.
The CMHC has about a 70 percent share of the Canadian
market. It posts its mortgage insurance premiums online,
and charges between 0.5 percent and 3.1 percent, depending
on the size of the downpayment and the loan.
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CIBC to take a hit from American mortgage exposures
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce announced last week
that it expects to take charge of $463 million in the
fourth quarter related to exposure to the U.S. subprime
mortgage market.
The charge on collateralized debt obligations and
residential mortgage-backed securities will amount to
$302 million after tax.
CIBC will release its fourth quarter and full-year
financial results in early December.
In mid-August, CIBC said it had about $1.7 billion USD
in the troubled U.S. mortgage market — as much
as $1 billion of it relating to subprime mortgages.
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Have a comment about a brief? Let us know by clicking
here.
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A Brief Message from ILS
Please click play to view a message
from ILS Learning Corporation
Cruising for Credits - Join Grant Hicks On Board from
January 27 to February 3, 2008
 With
the Second Annual ILS Caribbean CE Cruise about to set sail
on January 27, ilscorp.com would like to welcome Grant Hicks
aboard as a featured seminar presenter.
Grant will lead a two-hour seminar that covers key marketing
strategies taken from his second book and will feature "Marketing
System for Attracting, Converting and Effectively Servicing
New Clients".
Grant is a professional speaker, writer, co-author and a
Retirement Planning Specialist and owns Hicks Financial on
Vancouver Island. With Jay Conrad Levinson, he co-wrote "Guerrilla
Marketing for Financial Advisors."
In this seminar, you will discover:
-
how to effectively market and communicate
with new and existing clients
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which strategies work best for you
business
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how to attract the world to your business
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how to give people the opportunity
to connect with your business
-
and lots more!
This seminar is recommended - and accredited for - Insurance
Brokers and Financial Planners across Canada.
Don’t miss out on the chance to cruise the Caribbean
and earn up to 12 CE credits at the same time! There still
is some space left but book soon: cabins and pricing
are subject to availability. Don’t miss
the boat! Join Grant Hicks along with Steve Hawrishok,
President of ilscorp.com for seminars and relax the rest
of the day away in the sun.
For more information visit: www.ilscorp.com/cruise
PS – Don’t forget to talk to your financial
advisor about the tax benefits of a CE holiday!
Discover a First for the Canadian Insurance Industry: New
video courses from ilscorp.com and SGI CANADA
ilscorp.com has just added eight new video courses to the
General Insurance catalogue!
Following SGI CANADA's Agro Pak Policy wordings, the courses
are each presented in a new conversation format between a
broker and a client.
These courses are free for all current General
Insurance subscribers.
"From a broker point of view, they get to see some of
the questions a customer might have about an SGI CANADA product
and then get solutions on how to deal with such questions
or concerns," said Ken MacRae, Vice President and CEO
of ilscorp.com.
The newest courses, available in streaming-video and text
forms, are:
- SGI CANADA Farm Property: Part 1 General Section
- SGI CANADA Farm Property: Part 2 General Section
- SGI CANADA Farm Building & Contents Insurance
- SGI CANADA: Farm Fertilizer, Chemicals & Fodder Insurance
- SGI CANADA Grain & Irrigation Equipment Insurance
- SGI CANADA Farm Machinery Insurance
- SGI CANADA Farm Produce Advantage
- SGI CANADA Farm Property Advantage
Four courses dealing with SGI CANADA Farmers' Liability wordings
will be released on November 27.
Click
here to view a promotional video
The results are in!
Last month we polled our On Track readers to see how many
are currently working towards a CAIB or other insurance designation.
The majority of respondents – nearly 48 percent –
have already obtained their CAIB or other insurance designation.
The question: Are you currently working
towards a CAIB or other insurance designation?
The results:
Yes: 25%
No: 27.3%
I already hold a CAIB or other designation: 47.7%
For those still working towards the CAIB designation, why
not take a look at some of ilscorp.com's online video CAIB
tutorials? Visit http://www.ilscorp.ca/caib.php for more information
and to watch a short demonstration of our innovative courses.
For those not currently working towards a CAIB or other designation,
what are you waiting for?
Consider the benefits of the CAIB program:
- Provides you with formal, fundamental insurance knowledge
- Develops specialized skills
- Ensures you deliver the necessary expertise to your clients
- Develops your self confidence and contributes to your
career security
By taking the CAIB program, you’ll learn how:
- To apply your technical knowledge to practical situations
- To enhance your business competency
- To develop your marketing skills
- To strengthen your professional skills and ability
- To maximize your potential for management positions
"In many provinces, completing the CAIB 1, CAIB
2, CAIB 3 and CAIB 4 examinations are part of a step-licensing
process. On the other hand, many brokers take the CAIB courses
as part of the CAIB designation program. Whatever the reason,
we are confident that our ilscorp.com online video CAIB Exam
Preparation courses will assist all brokers in achieving their
goal."
- Steve Hawrishok, President of ilscorp.com and original author
of the CAIB program
What's "subprime" all about?
 According
to the U.S. Department of Treasury guidelines issued in 2001,
"Subprime borrowers typically have weakened credit histories
that include payment delinquencies, and possibly more severe
problems such as charge-offs, judgments, and bankruptcies.
They may also display reduced repayment capacity as measured
by credit scores, debt-to-income ratios, or other criteria
that may encompass borrowers with incomplete credit histories."
An important note about our e-mails
We've made a few changes to our e-mail accounts! To combat
spam, your copy of On Track will be sent from a new e-mail
address: ontrack@ilscorp.com.
In order to ensure that you continue to receive important
updates and news from ilscorp.com be sure to add ontrack@ilscorp.com
to your "Safe Senders" list.
E-mails from ilscorp.com will often send you with essential
updates or information about your account. From time to time
we will also provide you with important news from the industry,
including any changes to licensing requirements. Updates on
ilscorp.com products, services or general information will
now be sent from updates@ilscorp.com. Please add this to your
list of "Safe Senders" as well.
ilscorp.com will not sell or distribute your e-mail or other
contact information. We value your privacy and ours. Please
don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or
concerns about ilscorp.com e-mails.
If you do not to wish receive this newsletter, or
wish to subscribe another email address, please select your
option below.
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