Hi all, it's been a long while since I've created a post like this and I feel that it's well needed, much has happened over the past 4-5 years with insurance.
We're coming into a SOFT MARKET which is much needed given economic pressures. We've seen decreases from incumbent markets for the first time in many years and new entrants into the marketplace since last writing. Here is a summary of the markets available to you as of writing.
Aviva – 99% of the accounts you see with Aviva are in the 'programs' department. In 2022 - 2023 a 'program' was setup through Lloyds of London for a brokerage 'in Alberta'. That brokerage built a massive portfolio with Lloyd's and losses caught up quickly so Lloyds non-renewed the book of business. This caused the brokerage to complete a book transfer which is somewhat common in the industry. With the volume created, the brokerage moved the portfolio to Aviva, who was traditionally not an insurer of choice for the transportation industry (they incredibly selective on who they let in). The Aviva programs business is only available to 1 brokerage and there is very little underwriting that happens and seemingly they can beat the pricing of almost any insurer out there.
AIG – is steadfast player in this industry, they will only write operations consisting of 30+ power units. They will not support the Driver Inc. model and fleets consisting of primarily o/o's. Must be in business 5+ years at 30 or more trucks in order to be considered.
Blue Sky – is program is underwritten by AIG but is exclusive to a handful of brokerages. They will write operations 10+ trucks and any US miles. This program is very selective on who they let in. They boast stabilized rates and after a price correction they did a couple years back, they seem to be stabilized on pricing. This market is pretty hot on pricing - but may require patience as the loss prevention meetings and underwriting process can be lengthy.
Co-Operators – Co-Operators continues to write business but on a selective basis. No more than 4 trucks per policy and they can only do up to 400 KM radius of operations (no US operations). They are the most aggressive pricing for dump operations that I've seen as of recent. Their underwriting truly lacks understanding which is likely why they enter/exit the market frequently.
Cherokee Insurance - They are a US insurer that has presence in Canada. While officially only working with 1 brokerage in Canada, rumors that a national insurance brokerage also has access to them. They are unique in the sense they charge premiums monthly based on your unit counts. After each month, the insurer requires a report on what vehicles were to be listed - those premiums and then charged in accordance..... think 21B but monthly. There is also a requirement to hold premium in escrow to ensure the insurer is never left at a deficit. There is a skeleton crew that runs the CAN underwriting/claims division. From conversations with carriers previously insured with Cherokee, the claims for cargo losses have not gone well and typically drag on, service is not great. They are a suitable market between the 'standard insurers' and Facility Association. There is no driver approval and no loss prevention (double edge sword).
CHUBB – is still a player for large national fleets, but since my last writing Chubb has also engaged as a preferred insurer for 2 brokerages in the Brampton area. It would appear as those these brokerages have the ability to influence pricing, regardless of the quality of the fleet. Chubb underwrites fleets of 30 + trucks (though the minimum number of units may be 50), they don't seem to question Driver Inc. or 'synthetic fleets' (those consisting of almost all o/o's). The underwriting process from what I understand is very quick/streamlined, making this an attractive option to some. Loss Prevention is controlled by the brokerage so the insurer very seldom would interact direct with the carriers they're insuring.
Echelon – is still going strong in the trucking marketplace. They are competitive with the likes of Old Republic and Intact for those fleets that predominately travel into the US. Echelon writes fleets of 10+ units, 5 Yrs in business (as a fleet) and good loss ratios. They have built some traction in the marketplace and I feel they do so in a responsible way (they don't try and grow too fast). I can see this market picking up traction as long as they remain disciplined in their approach.
Economical – nothing has changed for Economical since i wrote this last. They are frustrating to deal with and seemingly no logic to what company's they will/won't quote.
Still hot on the heels of them dumping almost their entire book of business and really fucking up the industry, Economical is selectively looking at trucking risks and when the operation fits into their box, they can be pretty aggressive. If you just crossing into the US bordering States then these guys could be the choice for you this year. Just don't be surprised if they turn around and dump their book of business again.
Other insurers got smart and decided to put together coverage for trucking companies for physical damage coverage which doesn't discriminate against 'at fault' or 'not at fault' accidents. So the insured gets coverage regardless of fault - they also pay a deductible regardless of fault!
The biggest takeaway for this 'market' is the fact that there is zero driver approval for Facility. However, the insurer that would pick up the physical damage, motor truck cargo & CGL usually has loose guidelines on driver 'approvals'. stating that each driver needs to have at least 1 year of licensed experience. They confirm this based on the abstract and the MELT data (if applicable). If a driver has less than 1 year experience they will usually add them subject to a double or triple deductible, putting more risk on the carrier. A link to my prior article on Facility Association can be found here.
Insurers that provide coverage for the physical damage/MTC & CGL are; Aurora Underwriting, Burns & Wilcox and SRIM to name a few.
Fenchurch - is a new market in the trucking industry and has been writing business for the prior 3'ish years. They write for only 2 brokerages (in the Brampton area) currently in this class and similar to Chubb, the brokerages seem to have complete control over pricing and loss control. They are aggressively writing a lot of the Brampton business and I hear many complaints from their current/prior customers advising of poor service, claims denial and inconsistent communication from their brokers.
Intact - has steadily grown over the past 12 months, writing much of the business from Old Republic and Echelon with the high US mileage fleets. Intact is pushing their clients to share ELD data which will be used in the future to help build rates for more of an automated approach for renewals. They will look at the critical events, time of day and roads travelled for your fleet and compare them to others in their book to help establish a rate. This data (so far) is not used to deny claims nor is this info used to surcharge your policy. They also compensate for your fleet sharing this information to make it more enticing. While I do appreciate their attempt to make the renewal process easier, I'm weary as this would eliminate a function of my role in the negotiating process.
Lynx – is a program written for non-fleet operations (under 10), though they can stay on risk for those operations that grow no larger than 20 units. Their pricing is aggressive though the process of getting a quote can be painful (for the brokerage - just due to their process). Lynx's pricing for an o/o is very strong - sometimes competing with the likes of Fenchurch for pricing. They use Echelon paper/wordings behind the scenes so you're backed by an insurer who is specialized in the industry.
Northbridge – have seen continued growth and profitability. They are the strongest with operations that are 30+ trucks and not typically the market of choice for smaller operations (primarily due to cost). That said, Northbridge is widely recognized as the 'value add' insurer and provide top industry expertise and claims handling services. Sometimes 'you get what you pay for', isn't a bad thing!
Old Republic – has been a strong partner over my career, however their underwriting philosophy as to where we stand as a hard/soft market is not fully understood by the head office which is domiciled in Chicago (it's very much a HARD market in the US for trucking fleets). Old Republic has lost some key accounts with high US mileage - so if this is you, start shopping to help find a better option (or to leverage them on pricing).
Sovereign General – Very small presence in trucking. They are not actively looking to grow this vertical and seem to hang onto accounts but not writing much in the way of new clients lately.
Wawanesa – Similar to Sov Gen., they will write smaller accounts if they are clean and usually compete against Cooperators as their underwriting guidelines will only allow for regional exposure (and no US mileage).
We're coming into a SOFT MARKET which is much needed given economic pressures. We've seen decreases from incumbent markets for the first time in many years and new entrants into the marketplace since last writing. Here is a summary of the markets available to you as of writing.
Aviva – 99% of the accounts you see with Aviva are in the 'programs' department. In 2022 - 2023 a 'program' was setup through Lloyds of London for a brokerage 'in Alberta'. That brokerage built a massive portfolio with Lloyd's and losses caught up quickly so Lloyds non-renewed the book of business. This caused the brokerage to complete a book transfer which is somewhat common in the industry. With the volume created, the brokerage moved the portfolio to Aviva, who was traditionally not an insurer of choice for the transportation industry (they incredibly selective on who they let in). The Aviva programs business is only available to 1 brokerage and there is very little underwriting that happens and seemingly they can beat the pricing of almost any insurer out there.
AIG – is steadfast player in this industry, they will only write operations consisting of 30+ power units. They will not support the Driver Inc. model and fleets consisting of primarily o/o's. Must be in business 5+ years at 30 or more trucks in order to be considered.
Blue Sky – is program is underwritten by AIG but is exclusive to a handful of brokerages. They will write operations 10+ trucks and any US miles. This program is very selective on who they let in. They boast stabilized rates and after a price correction they did a couple years back, they seem to be stabilized on pricing. This market is pretty hot on pricing - but may require patience as the loss prevention meetings and underwriting process can be lengthy.
Co-Operators – Co-Operators continues to write business but on a selective basis. No more than 4 trucks per policy and they can only do up to 400 KM radius of operations (no US operations). They are the most aggressive pricing for dump operations that I've seen as of recent. Their underwriting truly lacks understanding which is likely why they enter/exit the market frequently.
Cherokee Insurance - They are a US insurer that has presence in Canada. While officially only working with 1 brokerage in Canada, rumors that a national insurance brokerage also has access to them. They are unique in the sense they charge premiums monthly based on your unit counts. After each month, the insurer requires a report on what vehicles were to be listed - those premiums and then charged in accordance..... think 21B but monthly. There is also a requirement to hold premium in escrow to ensure the insurer is never left at a deficit. There is a skeleton crew that runs the CAN underwriting/claims division. From conversations with carriers previously insured with Cherokee, the claims for cargo losses have not gone well and typically drag on, service is not great. They are a suitable market between the 'standard insurers' and Facility Association. There is no driver approval and no loss prevention (double edge sword).
CHUBB – is still a player for large national fleets, but since my last writing Chubb has also engaged as a preferred insurer for 2 brokerages in the Brampton area. It would appear as those these brokerages have the ability to influence pricing, regardless of the quality of the fleet. Chubb underwrites fleets of 30 + trucks (though the minimum number of units may be 50), they don't seem to question Driver Inc. or 'synthetic fleets' (those consisting of almost all o/o's). The underwriting process from what I understand is very quick/streamlined, making this an attractive option to some. Loss Prevention is controlled by the brokerage so the insurer very seldom would interact direct with the carriers they're insuring.
Echelon – is still going strong in the trucking marketplace. They are competitive with the likes of Old Republic and Intact for those fleets that predominately travel into the US. Echelon writes fleets of 10+ units, 5 Yrs in business (as a fleet) and good loss ratios. They have built some traction in the marketplace and I feel they do so in a responsible way (they don't try and grow too fast). I can see this market picking up traction as long as they remain disciplined in their approach.
Economical – nothing has changed for Economical since i wrote this last. They are frustrating to deal with and seemingly no logic to what company's they will/won't quote.
Still hot on the heels of them dumping almost their entire book of business and really fucking up the industry, Economical is selectively looking at trucking risks and when the operation fits into their box, they can be pretty aggressive. If you just crossing into the US bordering States then these guys could be the choice for you this year. Just don't be surprised if they turn around and dump their book of business again.
- No more than 30% US Exposure
Other insurers got smart and decided to put together coverage for trucking companies for physical damage coverage which doesn't discriminate against 'at fault' or 'not at fault' accidents. So the insured gets coverage regardless of fault - they also pay a deductible regardless of fault!
The biggest takeaway for this 'market' is the fact that there is zero driver approval for Facility. However, the insurer that would pick up the physical damage, motor truck cargo & CGL usually has loose guidelines on driver 'approvals'. stating that each driver needs to have at least 1 year of licensed experience. They confirm this based on the abstract and the MELT data (if applicable). If a driver has less than 1 year experience they will usually add them subject to a double or triple deductible, putting more risk on the carrier. A link to my prior article on Facility Association can be found here.
Insurers that provide coverage for the physical damage/MTC & CGL are; Aurora Underwriting, Burns & Wilcox and SRIM to name a few.
Fenchurch - is a new market in the trucking industry and has been writing business for the prior 3'ish years. They write for only 2 brokerages (in the Brampton area) currently in this class and similar to Chubb, the brokerages seem to have complete control over pricing and loss control. They are aggressively writing a lot of the Brampton business and I hear many complaints from their current/prior customers advising of poor service, claims denial and inconsistent communication from their brokers.
Intact - has steadily grown over the past 12 months, writing much of the business from Old Republic and Echelon with the high US mileage fleets. Intact is pushing their clients to share ELD data which will be used in the future to help build rates for more of an automated approach for renewals. They will look at the critical events, time of day and roads travelled for your fleet and compare them to others in their book to help establish a rate. This data (so far) is not used to deny claims nor is this info used to surcharge your policy. They also compensate for your fleet sharing this information to make it more enticing. While I do appreciate their attempt to make the renewal process easier, I'm weary as this would eliminate a function of my role in the negotiating process.
Lynx – is a program written for non-fleet operations (under 10), though they can stay on risk for those operations that grow no larger than 20 units. Their pricing is aggressive though the process of getting a quote can be painful (for the brokerage - just due to their process). Lynx's pricing for an o/o is very strong - sometimes competing with the likes of Fenchurch for pricing. They use Echelon paper/wordings behind the scenes so you're backed by an insurer who is specialized in the industry.
Northbridge – have seen continued growth and profitability. They are the strongest with operations that are 30+ trucks and not typically the market of choice for smaller operations (primarily due to cost). That said, Northbridge is widely recognized as the 'value add' insurer and provide top industry expertise and claims handling services. Sometimes 'you get what you pay for', isn't a bad thing!
Old Republic – has been a strong partner over my career, however their underwriting philosophy as to where we stand as a hard/soft market is not fully understood by the head office which is domiciled in Chicago (it's very much a HARD market in the US for trucking fleets). Old Republic has lost some key accounts with high US mileage - so if this is you, start shopping to help find a better option (or to leverage them on pricing).
Sovereign General – Very small presence in trucking. They are not actively looking to grow this vertical and seem to hang onto accounts but not writing much in the way of new clients lately.
Wawanesa – Similar to Sov Gen., they will write smaller accounts if they are clean and usually compete against Cooperators as their underwriting guidelines will only allow for regional exposure (and no US mileage).
. And yes, the ones to consider are the ones that benefit the insured!. Might be worth a separate post if you want..