Latest Market Headlines
All the headlines from our Market Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Commercial Insurance Market Stable in 2020: A.M. Best
Dec 16 2019 // The market outlook on the U.S. commercial lines industry for 2020 is stable. according to analysts at ratings firm A.M. Best who cite “improved market conditions and solid levels of risk-adjusted capitalization that...
P/C Direct Premium Written Up 4.9%
Dec 16 2019 // Direct premium written (DPW) for property/casualty insurance companies continues to increase, albeit gradually. At year-end 2018, total DPW for all P/C insurers aggregately increased approximately 4% over 2017, an increase...
Driver Privacy Concerns in Auto Insurance. There’s an App for That.
Dec 13 2019 // Apps that let you book a ride to work or borrow a car for your next vacation are feeding into a revolution in auto insurance — while also raising some privacy red flags. Data on everything from how frequently a car...
Industry Representative Puts Fire Insurance Availability at Feet of Commissioner
Dec 6 2019 // California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara will have to choose whether he wants insurers to charge higher rates or to stop writing homeowners insurance in fire-prone areas, an industry representative said following new...
California Commissioner Calls for Statewide Non-Renewal Moratorium, More Measures to Protect Wildfire Victims
Dec 5 2019 // California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara on Thursday issued a mandatory one-year moratorium on insurance companies non-renewing policyholders, a move he says will help at least 800,000 homes in wildfire disaster...
MetLife to Enter Pet Insurance Market with Acquisition of PetFirst Program
Dec 5 2019 // MetLife has agreed to acquire PetFirst Healthcare, a pet insurance program administrator that currently distributes its pet insurance products through animal welfare agencies, direct-to-consumer channels and...
Was It an Act of War? That’s Merck Cyber Attack’s $1.3 Billion Insurance Question.
Dec 3 2019 // By the time Deb Dellapena arrived for work at Merck & Co.’s 90-acre campus north of Philadelphia, there was a handwritten sign on the door: The computers are down. It was worse than it seemed. Some employees who...
Wildfire Crisis is Roiling California’s Insurance Market
Nov 27 2019 // Lauris Bye, a homebuilding industry veteran who moved to Southern California’s wildfire-prone hills decades ago, felt confident about the newly built house he was buying about 30 miles north of downtown Los...
Confessions of a Diehard Insurance Data Fan: Part 2
Nov 25 2019 // After Bill Pieroni, the CEO of ACORD, delivered a presentation about ACORD’s latest study, “Intelligent Growth: Intent, Decisions, Outcomes,” he sat down with Wells Media’s Andrew Simpson to talk...
Wildfires Likely to Boost California Surplus Lines Homeowners Share; FAIR Plan Expansion Questioned
Nov 22 2019 // Premium volume from homeowners polices written by California’s surplus lines industry, although still small, has doubled over the past four years, seemingly pushed by an increase in wildfires in the state. Some...
Insurance Journal’s Academy of Insurance Publishes Children’s Book
Nov 21 2019 // San Diego, CA, November 21, 2019 – Insurance Journal’s Academy of Insurance today announced the release of Popsicle Insurance, a children’s book that teaches kids about insurance in a fun and entertaining...
Florida’s New Consumer Advocate Tackles Open Hurricane Michael Claims
Nov 19 2019 // Florida’s new Insurance Consumer Advocate Tasha Carter has been busy since taking office August 1. With more than 12,000 Hurricane Michael claims still open, according to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation,...
100% Job Placement Promise Sealed the Deal for All Risks’ Neeley
Nov 18 2019 // Like many students entering college, Joe Neeley wasn’t sure what he wanted to study. But a presentation on the insurance industry opened the door to a career he’d never thought about before. “I...
A Passion for Learning Is a Driving Force for J.M. Wilson’s Galecka
Nov 18 2019 // One of the things Kristy Galecka loves about the property/casualty insurance industry is that there’s always an opportunity to learn something new. Like many others, Galecka “fell into” the insurance...
Boosting Resilience to U.S. Wildfires Should Be Insurance Industry Priority: I.I.I.
Nov 18 2019 // Nearly a year after the deadliest and costliest wildfire in U.S. history, insurers and the customers they cover are revisiting how to reduce their collective exposure to this risk, according to the Insurance Information...
How to Bring in Young People to Insurance
Nov 18 2019 // The workforce is faced with a generation gap. Baby boomers are retiring at the rate of 10,000 per day. Generation X and millennials each have a smaller pool of people than baby boomers. Generation Z is now the largest...
Senior Living Market Explodes During Challenging Times
Nov 18 2019 // The senior population continues growing at a time when the insurance market for senior living operations is under strain and both trends are expected to continue. The population of Americans over age 80 will double, from 6...
As Texas Windstorm Insurer Mulls Rates, Policyholders, Lawmakers Strongly Oppose Hikes
Nov 15 2019 // Texas’ property insurer of last resort for wind and hail in counties along the Gulf Coast is finding itself once again between a rock and a hard place — or perhaps more appropriately, between a hurricane and a...
Hail Has Damaged Insurance Market for Car Dealers. Parametric Insurance May Help.
Nov 14 2019 // Nick Pacifico has been working at his family’s Cadillac dealership in Denver since 2003. He’s never seen insurance costs this bad. “Getting coverage is nearly impossible,” said Pacifico, vice...
Introducing School of Risk Management and Insurance at Cal State University Fullerton
Nov 13 2019 // What’s in a name? In one case, a new name – one with all the sex appeal that “insurance” can add to a title – has people like Framroze Virjee, president of California State University Fullerton,...
