The
Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) issued a statement yesterday in response to the Province of Ontario’s decision to create a new financial services regulator. In the statement, the bureau congratulated the provincial government for taking its first step toward modernized insurance regulation.
“Canada’s insurers are pleased that the government is reforming the way Ontario regulates insurance,” said IBC Ontario vice-president Kim Donaldson. “Today’s Economic Outlook outlines a process for establishing a world-class insurance regulator that can adapt to changing consumer needs and industry trends.”
The statement followed the Government of Ontario’s
2016 Economic Outlook and Fiscal Review yesterday, where the government announced it would be introducing legislation to establish the initial parameters of the new Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA). Once legislation is in place, the government made it known that it would develop an implementation plan and appoint the FSRA’s board of directors.
The IBC urged the government to immediately introduce enabling legislation and to cooperate with the property and casualty insurance industry as the FSRA develops its own mandate.
The release also noted that the new regulator should be able to help with Ontario’s automobile insurance issues. The current rate regulation process for the province’s auto insurance industry “stifles innovation and prevents the benefits of a competitive market from being fully realized,” the release said.
“We look forward to learning the details of this new legislation,” Donaldson added. “IBC will continue to work with the government to better serve the consumers of this province.”
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