Writers – The Media Pub News (TM)

AM Best: Canada Property/Casualty Insurers well-positioned; life writers face volatility in 2020 (AM BestTV)

OLDWICK, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–In this episode of ^AMBestTV, Brian Lynch and Anthony McSwieney, senior financial analysts, AM Best, said 2020 has brought fewer property/casualty (P/C) claims, but has increased investment uncertainty in the Canada market. Click on http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=ambcanada920 to view the entire program.

Lynch said Canada’s P/C industry remains on solid footing despite the pandemic.

“AM Best believes P/C insurers in Canada are well-positioned through 2020, as shown by their solid capitalization and risk mitigation practices,” said Lynch. “However, COVID-19 and the new normal are changing the lives of insureds. It is creating a slew of new benefits, as well as new challenges for insurance companies. Some of those new benefits relate to the remote work, whether it is the decline of ridership or the hyper-vigilance that comes with being home. Additionally, the new challenges include: how will these remote workers be covered in the future? Or what kind of cyber exposure has been exposed because of the rush to work from home?”

AM Best revised its outlook on Canada’s life/annuity industry in April 2020. McSwieney highlighted the rationale behind the change.

“The disruption in the financial markets due to COVID-19 triggered AM Best revising its outlook to negative from stable in April, and unfortunately, the fundamentals essentially has not changed. There are more known variables now than when AM Best revised its outlook, as things related to the volatility in the equity markets have caused some permanent losses for insurers. Now, that does not move the needle from a ratings perspective, but it does create volatility on the earnings side and the balance sheet side.”

To access the related market segment report, titled, “COVID-19 Taking Its Toll on Canada’s Economy and Insurance Industry,” please visit http://www3.ambest.com/bestweek/purchase.asp?record_code=300880.

Recent ^AMBestTV coverage includes:

Hardening Market Driving Bermuda Captive Growth: Captive insurers old and new are writing more business during the hardening market, according to a panel focused on the Bermuda landscape: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=ambcaptives920.
Hard Market Driving Interest in Captives: The pandemic, economic downturn and higher insurance rates have increased interest in captive insurers, said panelists in a recent AM Best webinar: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=ambcaptiverecut920.
New Data Sources, AI Changing Commercial Underwriting: The “explosion of digital economy” and use of artificial intelligence is improving underwriting, according to the “Using New Data to Out-Select the Competition,” panel: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=carpedata920.
AM Best: Top Five Global Reinsurers Demonstrate Strong Relationships: Swiss Re and Munich Re remain the two largest global reinsurers, while other companies may have struggled, said Dan Hofmeister, financial analyst, AM Best: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=globalretop50920.

^AMBestTV covers exclusive AM Best and insurance industry information and reports, targeted topics and key developments in the insurance, reinsurance and related sectors daily. Sign up for alerts of episodes at www.ambest.com/multimedia/ambtvsignup.html. View ^AMBestTV episodes at www.ambest.tv.

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in New York, London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

Contacts

Lee McDonald
Group Vice President, Publication and News Services
+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5561
lee.mcdonald@ambest.com

Thinking about freelancing? Consider this

Art All Night Trenton 2017 art exhibit.
–Photo by Michelle Dryden

Today, millions of American artists are doing freelance work, and the business of freelance writing is filled with endless possibilities, opportunities and freedom.

One of the biggest advantages of freelance writing is that it takes almost nothing to start. The same is true for an artist. For either of them, it costs almost nothing to begin their journey.

Shelly Larson shares findings of a research in her article about freelance writing that is growing tremendously with more than 53 million Americans doing it.

Freelancing is an escape dream for many who do not want constraints on themselves, their work, or their time. It allows dreamers to escape into their dream world, and none does it better than the artist.
Artists crave freedom and creativity to showcase their talent and hard work to the world. They want to evoke emotions in others that give them abundant joy.

Although there are many aspirants to these artistic fields, only few make the leap. We can refer to the adage: There are two sides to the same coin. That is, freelancing has pros and cons.

There is a huge growth in demand for artists and freelance writers, owing to the Internet revolution and self-publishing sites like YouTube and Facebook.

As a freelance writer or artist, you do not have to worry about where to go to work. A freelance writer can work from almost anywhere in the world, with reasonable Internet connection. Artists do not have to worry either, because art is appreciated everywhere.

Artists are their own bosses and do not have to work for anyone except the vision of their art. Art is beautiful to the artist, and the idea of provoking emotions in others simply by your work of art is very intriguing.

However, on the flipside of the coin, freelance writers and artists have inconsistent income. Their hands can be so full sometimes that they might just have to turn down a few things. At other times, they are trying to find water in a desert.

Low income is a very high possibility for artists and freelance writers due to a lack of skill in lead acquisition. Although freelance writers and artists have freedoms that regular jobs do not have, they do not have the health benefits that most regular jobs offer.

Kristin Rymoen Ellstrom shares in her article that being an artist can be lonely. After all, she finds that most of the creative fields are solitary.

Whatever freelance field you choose, whether it is freelance writing or the path of an artist, you should consider the pros and the cons mentioned here.