OLYMPIC EFFORTS
On September 14, CARSTAR Ellerslie, part of the CARSTAR Johnny K Group, held an Olympic-themed Staff Appreciation Day–dubbed the JKCG Olympics–where staff competed in a variety of activities to foster team spirit and camaraderie.
Johnny Kloeckes, owner of six CARSTAR locations in the Edmonton, Alta., area, spearheaded this event. An advocate for community initiatives and raising funds for CARSTAR’s charity of choice, Cystic Fibrosis Canada, Kloeckes decided to add a charitable twist to the day, raising a total of $700 for the charity. CARSTAR Johnny K Group staff participated in classic “Olympic events” like cornhole, ladder golf, a pit-stop challenge, a basketball shootout–even double axe-throwing was an event option.
Another highlight of the event–a dunk tank where staff could bid to dunk their boss or coworker. The dunk tank raised $350 for Cystic Fibrosis, with a $350 matching donation from Kloeckes.
HAILSTORM HARDSHIPS
The Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) is warning that more automotive insurers could be pushed out of the province following an August hailstorm that resulted in $900 million in unexpected claims costs pressures.
Specifically, Aaron Sutherland, IBC’s vice president for the Pacific and Western area explained in a media release that costs come “at a time when Alberta’s auto insurance system is in crisis due to the province’s rate cap.”
Sutherland continued that “under the rate cap, auto insurers are unable to recover from the growing cost of claims over the past two years. This has created a dire economic environment that has forced several companies to leave Alberta’s auto insurance market, limiting competition and choice for consumers.” Overall, the Calgary hailstorm that occurred in August—which saw chicken egg-sized hailstones falling onto vehicles and property—created more than 130,000 insurance claims and about $2.8 billion in damage.
The IBC notes that more than half of those claims—about 70,000—resulted in estimated claims payments for vehicle damage alone for $900 million.
