Two insurers want to open branches in Canada

Two new property and casualty insurers applied to establish a Canadian branch in January. The first is based in France and the second in the United States.

Applications to establish a Canadian branch are published in the Canada Gazette. On January 8, the Gazette website announced that Europ Assistance S.A. intends to file an application with the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) on or after February 21 for an order approving the insuring in Canada of risks under section 574 of the Insurance Companies Act.  

Europ Assistance S.A., which operates primarily in Europe and the United Kingdom, intends to operate its branch under the same name in French and under the name Europ Assistance S.A. Canada Branch in English. The insurer's application is being made through the law firm Dentons Canada.

The French insurer is a P&C insurance company that intends to offer property, liability, accident and sickness, and automobile insurance in Canada. The company’s head office is in Paris, and its Canadian chief agency will be located in Toronto. The parent company, Assicurazioni Generali S.p.A., is based in Italy.

Westport transfers its operations  

The second application was published in the Canada Gazette on January 21, 2022. It was filed by North American Specialty Insurance Company (NAS), a company incorporated and formed under the laws of Missouri, and an affiliate of Westport Insurance Corporation.

The insurer intends to file its application with OSFI on or after February 21. The approval will authorize the insurer to write property, accident and sickness, aircraft, automobile, boiler and machinery, credit, fidelity, hail, liability, marine and surety business in Canada.

NAS is headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, and its chief Canadian agency will be located in Toronto. Westport currently operates in Canada through its Canadian branch. Subject to OSFI approval, Westport intends to transfer the operations of its existing Canadian branch to the proposed NAS branch.

Subject to regulatory approval in the United States, the name NAS will be changed to Swiss Re Corporation Solutions America Insurance Corporation, which would also be the name under which its Canadian branch would operate.