Growing number of seniors account for Ontario insolvency filings: study

Seniors have the highest level of outstanding debt among people filing for insolvency in Ontario – including the largest balance of unpaid payday loans.

A study of 6,000 personal insolvencies in Ontario in 2013 and 2014 – including people who filed for bankruptcy or filed consumer proposals – shows a growing number of people over age 60 are among those hitting the debt wall.

Seniors accounted for 10 per cent of all insolvencies – up from 8 per cent four years ago – and had the highest level of unsecured debt at the time of their insolvency, averaging $69,031 each. That is 22 per cent higher than the average unsecured debt of $56,545 for all people filing for insolvency, according to the review by bankruptcy trustee firm Hoyes Michalos & Associates Inc.

Alliant Continues Expansion Efforts with Addition of Insurance Veteran Tim Ward

Company seeking top-tier brokerage talent from around the nation

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Alliant Insurance Services, the nation’s largest specialty insurance brokerage firm, has announced that Tim Ward has joined the company as Assistant Vice President, Business Development. A 40-year insurance veteran, Ward will continue the company’s initiative to attract top brokerage talent from around the U.S. as part of its national expansion campaign.

“Alliant is expanding its reach across all facets of the business, and Tim will lead the charge to bring top producers to our talented brokerage team,” said Peter Carpenter, Chief Operating Officer of Alliant Insurance Services. “This will continue Alliant’s commitment to deploying the best talent in the business to service our clients.”

2 Vermont women sue over tribe's online lending practices

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Two Vermont women are trying to open a class-action lawsuit that, if successful, could upend the practice of online lending companies using Native American tribes' sovereignty to skirt state laws against high-interest payday loans.

Jessica Gingras and Angela Given say in their lawsuit filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Vermont that Plain Green LLC is exploiting and extorting its borrowers through predatory lending in violation of federal trade and consumer laws.

Plain Green charges annual interest rates of up to 379 percent for its loans, which are typically used by low-income borrowers in need of emergency cash. The company is owned by Montana's Chippewa Cree Tribe, which uses the tribal-sovereignty doctrine to ignore states' laws that cap interest rates on payday loans.

Car Insurance Quotes Comparison Tool Can Easily Receive Quotes From Top Auto Insurance Quote Providers

Light Image Quotes announces car insurance quotes comparison tool. Get auto quotes from Geico, Liberty Mutual, Allstate and more.

Light Image Quotes announces new car insurance quotes comparison tool, so you can get car insurance quotes from Geico Car Insurance, Liberty Mutual, Allstate and more.

How are auto insurance quotes determined? Rates are based on a number of calculating factors, which are primarily focused on evaluating risk. Such factors include: age, gender, vehicle type, vehicle year, location, accident history, vehicle history, credit history, driving record, and vehicle mileage.

Visit our site to learn more and compare auto insurance quotes with the insurance quotes comparison tool. Find out if you quality for lower car insurance. Get the cheapest quotes with the Light Image Quotes car insurance quotes comparison tool. Receive fast auto quotes from Geico Insurance, Liberty Mutual, Allstate and more.

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Is Travel Insurance Worth Buying for Your Dream Vacation?

The come-ons for insurance are constant and often compelling when you travel. They start the moment you click on a booking site and sometimes don’t end until you disembark.

Want to insure your airline ticket? Your cruise? How about your luggage, pets or rental skis? Take a look around: There’s almost nothing that can’t be insured.

No surprise that travel insurance is a billion-dollar-a-year business. The industry has recorded steady year-over-year sales increases since 9/11, according to the U.S. Travel Insurance Association, a trade group.

But is insurance worth it? That depends.

If you’re Adam Creighton, yes. He purchased travel insurance before leaving for Colombia, where he was building homes for a nonprofit organization.

Payday loans: Predatory loan sharks or crucial fix in a pinch?

This is part of a Globe series that explores our growing dependence on credit – from the average household to massive institutions – and the looming risks for a nation addicted to cheap money. Join the conversation on Twitter with the hashtag #DebtBinge

It all began with a pair of jeans.

Robbie McCall wanted to give his daughter a new pair for Christmas. But he was short of cash. Mr. McCall, 47, lives on a fixed disability payment of $1,350 a month and he just didn’t have the money to buy them.

Payday loans: What are the alternatives?

Critics of high-cost payday loans say many people have no borrowing options from mainstream financial institutions to get quick loans in small amounts, so they turn to payday lenders as their only practical alternative. But a range of diverse organizations are now proposing new models, saying there are better ways to provide loans to low-income people.Church of England

In the U.K., the Church of England has launched a direct attack at the payday loan industry, announcing plans to set up its own credit union through the nation’s churches. Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, has led the charge, declaring that he wants to put leading British payday lender Wonga out of business. After an embarrassing initial misstep when the church discovered it had invested £100,000 ($189,000) in Wonga’s parent