Latest Market Headlines

All the headlines from our Market Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Standard & Poor’s Annual Insurance Conference

Jul 4 2005 // Top Corporate Executives Stress Moving Beyond Spitzer Despite recent adversity and scrutiny faced by the insurance industry, financial ratings for companies appear on the upswing. “For the first time that I can...

What is Finite Risk Reinsurance? A Definitive Explanation

Jul 4 2005 // Recent insurance industry investigations have begun to put prior finite reinsurance transactions under a microscope, creating the need to re-examine this reinsurance product, but more importantly determine its role in the...

Calif. Commissioner Discusses Workers’ Comp, Homeowners’ Insurance

Jul 4 2005 // California Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi recently took time out from his schedule to chat with Insurance Journal Online Editor Dave Thomas regarding SB 938, “use it and lose it” practices against...

Who’s Afraid of a Little Competition?

Jul 4 2005 // Five or fewer insurers control at least three-quarters of the small-group insurance market. This lack of competition contributes to double-digit premium increases for many small businesses and forces an increase in the...

Insurers Holding the Price Line – for Now

Jul 4 2005 // The insurance industry is entering a soft market, but unlike earlier soft markets, carriers have not cut prices to gain market share. Numerous life, property/casualty, and reinsurance executives say that underwriting...

RISK RETENTION GROUP PREMIUM SOARS ABOVE $2B:

Jul 4 2005 // As the number of risk retention groups has skyrocketed in the past three years, so has the premium generated by these member-owned insurers enabled by the 1986 Liability Risk Retention Act. Since year-end 2001, the number...

Va. Chief Insists SOX Debate Must Go On Despite Insurers’ Protests

Jul 4 2005 // The debate over insurance company financial reporting should center on the value of what is being reported by insurers and the effort to change the reporting rules must go on despite opposition by some, according to the...

Insurers Holding the Price Line-For Now

Jul 4 2005 // The insurance industry is entering a soft market, but unlike earlier soft markets, carriers have not cut prices to gain market share. Numerous life, property/casualty and reinsurance executives say that underwriting...

People

Jul 4 2005 // Columbus, Ohio-based Grange Insurance has promoted Alan D. Brannan to the new post of president of property/casualty for the Grange Mutual Casualty Group. In his new role, Brannan will oversee all property/casualty...

People

Jul 4 2005 // Joe Grauwiler has been named regional vice president of The Main Street America Group’s Jacksonville Region and president of its Old Dominion Insurance Co. unit. The region encompasses Main Street America’s...

News Briefs

Jul 4 2005 // ACIC OPPOSES CREDIT BILL: The Association of California Insurance Companies is opposing legislation which would eliminate rather than regulate credit-based insurance scoring, according to ACIC President Sam Sorich. The...

News Briefs

Jul 4 2005 // ACIC OPPOSES CREDIT BILL: The Association of California Insurance Companies is opposing legislation which would eliminate rather than regulate credit-based insurance scoring, according to ACIC President Sam Sorich. The...

Insurers Holding the Price Line–For Now

Jul 4 2005 // The insurance industry is entering a soft market, but unlike earlier soft markets, carriers have not cut prices to gain market share. Numerous life, property/casualty and reinsurance executives say that underwriting...

Record-Breaking 2004 Hurricane Season to Change Cat Modeling

Jul 1 2005 // The 2004 hurricane season has led to a much greater focus on aggregate risk and this will prompt changes in catastrophe risk assessment, attendees at the Casualty Actuarial Society (CAS) Spring meeting heard. Randall...

Treasury Report on Terrorism Insurance: Exec Summary

Jun 30 2005 // The following is the Introduction and the Executive Summary of the June 30, 2005 report from the Treasury Department on the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002 including its assessment of the act and recommendations for...

Businesses Hit Treasury Terrorism Insurance Report

Jun 30 2005 // The business lobby, Coalition to Insure Against Terrorism, is blasting as “flawed” and illogical the Treasury Department’s report recommending against renewal of the federal Terrorism Risk Insurance Act...

Hurzeler Receives IMCA Golden Torch Award at Annual Meeting

Jun 28 2005 // The Insurance Marketing Communications Association (www.imcanet.com) on Tuesday awarded Donald Hurzeler its Golden Torch Award in recognition of his lifelong contributions to the insurance industry. The presentation was...

AIIA Conference: Bell Calls Market ‘Impressive’; Rowe Says Response, Timing Are Critical

Jun 27 2005 // The Alabama insurance market is “impressive” and the state has a “healthy market, trending upward,” Alabama Insurance Commissioner Walter A. Bell told members of the Alabama Independent Insurance...

Report: U.S. Reinsurance Market Posts 105.5% Combined Ratio in 2004

Jun 23 2005 // Forty reinsurance companies reported net written premiums of $30.1 billion for 2004, showing a combined ratio of 105.5 percent in the Reinsurance Association of America’s “Reinsurance Underwriting Review: 2004...

News Briefs

Jun 20 2005 // MASSACHUSETTS CAR NAMES COMMERCIAL CARRIERS: Commonwealth Auto Reinsurers has advanced its new commercial auto limited servicing carrier program by selecting the six carriers that will service this residual market business...