Once again, the shaky economic climate brought a series of mergers, buyouts and other transactions. The second quarter of 2009 saw BMO completing its acquisition of AIG’s Canadian life insurance business. Munich Re completed its acquisition of Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection and Insurance Company. Totten Group acquired Norac Intermediaries, Zurich announced it was buying AIG’s car insurance unit, and Kingsway financial announced that it was exiting cross-border business.

Another tragic air crash brought with it complex insurance issues. The crash of Air France Flight 447 on June 1 killed all 216 passengers and 12 crew members. Axa Corporate Solutions, the lead insurer in the pool, said that this disaster could have been the most costly commercial airline accident since 2001. The insurer said Air France was set to receive a payment of about $94 million US dollars.

Canadian drivers heard a lot about their insurance policies this quarter. Ontario released its five year auto insurance review, the Saskatchewan Auto Fund applied for its first rate increase in nine years and the Alberta Auto Insurance Rate Board heard presentations on premium reviews, which included ideas of a 40 percent premium hike.

It was also the quarter of pandemics and Ponzis. Implications from the swine flu pandemic began to appear around the world, especially in Mexico where early estimates found that the flu was costing Mexico city about $57 million per day. And in June, Bernie Madoff, the former NASDAQ chairman and man behind a Ponzi scheme that bilked thousands out of billions of dollars, was sentenced to 150 years in prison.

More news worth looking at again, from the second quarter of 2009:

 

Mergers, acquisitions and transactions

Insurance industry news

Liability and lawsuits