Severe weather losses and rising cyber threats are pushing Canadian insurers to rethink what they offer beyond a claims payment. Everett McCallum, director of technical risk services at Echelon Insurance, examines how claims intelligence, risk engineering, and the broker relationship can each shift the industry's role from payer to strategic partner.
The promise of insurance has always been to pay when the worst happens. That promise holds. But mounting losses have opened a real opportunity for insurers to rethink their overall value proposition. Everett McCallum, director of technical risk services at Echelon Insurance, says the industry is responding to pressure from two directions: rising severity and rising cost. "As losses increase in both severity and cost, the role of the insurer is changing," he says. "Customers need a strategic partner who can help them identify, understand, and mitigate risks before they result in a loss. Insurers that invest in experienced risk engineers can provide practical, hands-on guidance tailored to a customer's operations, helping them address emerging exposures, strengthen controls, and improve resilience." Echelon built its risk services work around that principle from the start.
The figures are stark. Insured damage from severe weather events exceeded $2.4 billion in Canada in 2025, according to Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc, making 2025 the 10th costliest year on record for severe weather-related insured losses in Canada. A June 2026 Statistics Canada report found a sharp rise in catastrophic weather-related claims. Average annual payouts have neared $2 billion since 2009, up from roughly $400 million between 1983 and 2008. Annual losses hit $3.4 billion in 2022 and $9.4 billion in 2024. Canada's costliest 2025 weather events included a March Ontario and Quebec ice storm ($490 million), May wildfires near Flin Flon and La Ronge ($300 million), and August Prairie severe storms ($235 million).
Historic claims data does more than record what went wrong. It reveals where and why losses are occurring and flags trends across industries. McCallum told Insurance Business Canada that this intelligence is what moves businesses from reactive to prepared. "Claims data and risk intelligence provide valuable insight into where and why losses are occurring and which trends are emerging across industries," he says. "They help businesses move from reacting to events to being better prepared should they occur. Claims trends, industry insights, and risk intelligence help businesses identify emerging risks, benchmark their practices, and make more informed decisions." The most effective decisions, McCallum adds, combine past loss experience, a strong understanding of current operations, and insight into emerging risks and future trends.
Cyber risk sits at the top. Allianz's Risk Barometer cited cyber incidents, including ransomware attacks, as the top global business risk for the fifth year in a row. That persistence makes targeted prevention more important than ever. McCallum says organizations must take a tailored approach. "Organizations should take a tailored approach to risk mitigation by focusing on their most significant exposures, maintaining effective controls, and preparing for potential disruptions," he says. "Doing so helps strengthen resilience, improve business continuity, and support more constructive underwriting conversations, ultimately contributing to long-term sustainability." For both insurers and brokers, that threat makes knowing where to focus prevention efforts more important than ever before.
Shifting clients' mindsets begins at first contact. The 2025 National Broker Survey found that 96 percent of brokers described themselves as a "trusted advisor on insurance and risk matters" to clients, with 76 percent adding that proactively informing clients about emerging risks and exposures was a way they built trust. McCallum says brokers are in a unique position because they have that ongoing, two-way dialogue with customers from the start. "Proactive risk management discussions allow brokers to move beyond coverage conversations and become strategic advisors," he explains. "By sharing insights into customers' operations and evolving needs, brokers and insurers can work together to develop practical solutions that improve preparedness, strengthen resilience, and help prevent losses before they occur."
Echelon Insurance has practised a proactive, mitigation-led approach for years. Through its Technical Risk Services team, Echelon provides brokers and customers with risk assessments, technical guidance, educational resources, and practical risk mitigation support that help identify exposures and support business continuity. McCallum says collaboration is central to that model. "In recent years, we've also placed greater emphasis on the partnership between customers, brokers, and insurers, recognizing that effective risk management is a shared responsibility," he says. "Through open communication, brokers can bring customer concerns and emerging risks forward, ensuring the right expertise and resources are applied at the right time." Echelon is a specialty insurer, founded in 1998 and a member of the CAA Club Group of Companies since 2019.
Loss is the wrong trigger for expert intervention. Risk engineers offer insights that go beyond what applications, inspections, or loss history alone can reveal. They help insurers understand how a business operates, identify potential vulnerabilities, and assess whether existing controls remain effective as risks evolve. McCallum is direct on the point. "Risk engineers can translate claims trends, industry data, and emerging risk intelligence into actionable recommendations that help customers strengthen controls and reduce the likelihood of loss," he says. "Integrating risk engineering earlier in the customer journey allows businesses to address concerns proactively and creates opportunities for more collaborative risk management planning." When insurers contribute that expertise, McCallum says, "they demonstrate value long before a claim occurs." Brokers and risk managers seeking further analysis on proactive insurance strategies can explore Insurance Business Canada's premium reports.
Everett McCallum: director of technical risk services, Echelon Insurance.