Desjardins General Insurance
edit| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Insurance |
| Founded | 1944 in Montreal, Canada |
| Founder | Guy Cormier |
| Headquarters | Lévis , Canada |
Area served | Most of Canada |
Key people | Denis Dubois |
| Services | |
| Parent | Desjardins General Insurance Group |
| Website | desjardinsgeneralinsurance |
Desjardins General Insurance (DGI) is the P&C insurance subsidiary of Desjardins General Insurance Group, itself subsidiary of Desjardins Group. The brand is sister with Desjardins Financial Security, and both of them regroup under the banner of Desjardins Insurance.They now serve custumers in three provinces of Canada: Quebec, Alberta and Ontario.[1] DGI is one of the P&C leaders in Canada,[2] and in 2014, Desjardins General Insurance ranked third for custumer satisfaction in Quebec.[3]
Their main products are auto insurance, home insurance and business insurance, and are available through agents in the Desjardins Caisses network, Client Care Centres, website and mobile app.
History
editIn 1944, Desjardin Group's first subsidiary is created under the name of "Société d'assurance des caisses populaires (SACP)", today rebranded Desjardins General Insurance.[4] It was created to meet everybody's need, from their members to themselves: it offered in a single-contract protection against fire, hold-ups, burglaries and write-offs.[5]
In 1987, as to save their insurance company that was having financial problems, they completely turned around their business model and launched direct insurance.[6] Insurance was now available directly through the caisses and call networks. It is considered to be "one of the most controversial developments to hit the industry"[6], because it affected not only the Desjardins Group, but also the traditional brokerage network territory. They almost had to shut down, and had to go to court to defend their rights before their model was accepted.
In 2008, DGI was extending their home and auto insurance services outside their usual range to englobe the Ontario sector.[7]
In 2014, Desjardins Group acquired the Canadian operations of StateFarm to become the second-largest property and casualty insurer in Canada.[8] Until 2018, all the 1.2 million custumers in Ontario, Alberta and New Brunswick[9] were still served under the name of StateFarm, but on Mai 1, 2018, Desjardins officially started a campaign to rebrand StateFarm as Desjardins Insurance.[10] The transition is to be done by December 31, 2019.[11]
Controversy
editIn October 2017, Samuel Archibald was denied disability insurance because an agent looked online and tracked his social media to find out that he was maintaining some activities while on a medical leave for major depression.[12] He decided to write a an opinion piece in Montreal's LaPresse, and received many positive reactions and support.[13] The controversy was solved with Desjardins General Insurance retracting itself and giving Samuel retroactive payments totalling $20, 000.[14]
References
edit- ^ "Certas Direct Car Insurance Canada | DGI Direct Auto Insurance". www.completecar.ca. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
- ^ "Desjardins Assurances générales : Des rabais pour les véhicules à faible consommation de carburant - Éco-Énergie à Montréal". Éco-Énergie à Montréal (in French). 2010-08-30. Retrieved 2018-07-05.
- ^ "Auto insurer satisfaction declines in some provinces: J.D. Power study | Canadian Insurance". www.citopbroker.com. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
- ^ "Le mouvement Desjardins". S'expatrier, travailler et étudier au Québec, Canada (in Canadian French). 2005-10-19. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
- ^ "Consolidation de Desjardins « Histoire du Québec". histoire-du-quebec.ca. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
- ^ a b "Desjardins General Insurance celebrates its 25th anniversary as a direct insurer | ICMIF". www.icmif.org. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
- ^ "Desjardins pushes insurance business into Ontario | Investment Executive". Investment Executive. 2008-03-20. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
- ^ "Desjardins ramps up in P&C | Investment Executive". Investment Executive. 2014-02-15. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
- ^ "Montreal's Desjardins Group takes over State Farm Canada | CBC News". CBC. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
- ^ Adriano, Lyle. "State Farm Canada to rebrand as Desjardins Insurance". Insurance Business. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
- ^ "State Farm's Canadian operations to be rebranded as Desjardins Insurance | Canadian Insurance". citopbroker.com. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
- ^ Radio-Canada.ca, ICI Radio-Canada Première -. "Dépression et assureurs : l'histoire révoltante de l'auteur Samuel Archibald | Médium large". Médium large | ICI Radio-Canada.ca Première (in Canadian French). Retrieved 2018-06-26.
{{cite news}}: no-break space character in|title=at position 24 (help) - ^ "Novelist's battle over disability insurance claim sparks a reckoning in Quebec | The Star". thestar.com. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
- ^ "'It's time to heal': Montreal writer wins battle to get insurer to recognize his depression | CBC News". CBC. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
