Latest Market Headlines

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

Top 25: P/C Direct Premium Written Up 4.8 Percent

Aug 7 2017 // Direct premium written (DPW) for property/casualty insurance companies continues to increase, albeit gradually. At year-end 2016, approximately $606 billion of DPW was reported, a record high for the industry. For 2016,...

Youth Activist Urges Industry to Step Up Fight Against Climate Change

Aug 7 2017 // Seventeen-year-old climate activist Delaney Reynolds has a message for the insurance industry on the topic of climate change: It’s time to step up and take action against this global crisis. “Your future...

Report Calls out $361M of Euro Insurer Assets in Expanding Coal Concerns

Aug 3 2017 // A climate activist group is calling out a handful of European insurers for having significant holdings in fossil fuels despite pledges by the companies to be more climate friendly. A report released today alleges that...

Compare.com Is Proof Insurance Disruption Won’t Happen Overnight: CEO Rose

Aug 2 2017 // Disrupting an industry that has been doing things the same way for a generation takes time. Take it from one major insurance disruptor – compare.com. The online insurance comparison marketplace launched in the U.S. in...

Vullo Calls on Insurers, Congress for Action in Wake of Lake Ontario Flooding

Jul 28 2017 // As part of New York’s continuing response to flooding in the Lake Ontario region, the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) is reminding property and casualty insurers of their responsibility to work...

Democratic Republic of Congo to Open $500M Insurance Industry to Investors

Jul 28 2017 // The Democratic Republic of Congo’s insurance regulator is preparing to open up an industry for the first time that could be worth as much as $500 million a year to investors. The newly created Insurance Regulatory...

Report: Climate Change May Pose Threat to Nation’s Electric Grid

Jul 27 2017 // Climate change may pose a serious risk to the nation’s electric grid, according to a new report. The report was prepared by Johns Hopkins University with help from Swiss Re. “Lights out: The risks of climate...

Private Insurers Cautiously Dip Toes Into Florida Flood Market Waters

Jul 27 2017 // Florida’s efforts in establishing a private flood insurance market have been hailed as a model by many other states looking to buff up their flood insurance offerings, as well as the National Flood Insurance Program...

Government’s Disruption in Insurtech Market: The Zebra CEO

Jul 24 2017 // Unsurprisingly, discussion surrounding government’s role in free markets with large corporations can be contentious, but it’s critical to understand that laws and regulations serve a purpose. To what extent...

Sign of the Times – Brokers vs. Carriers on a Classic Soft Market

Jul 24 2017 // Brokers vs. Carriers on a Classic Soft Market Chief executive officers of property/casualty insurance brokers and P/C insurance carriers called each other out in June for engaging in activities they said were...

How to Succeed in a Soft Insurance Market

Jul 24 2017 // It’s no secret that the insurance marketplace right now is extremely soft. The amount of capacity in the industry continues to rise as new entrants are coming into the market or existing carriers are either opening...

4 Ways to Help New Producers Beat the Odds

Jul 24 2017 // To say that most new producers don’t hit the ground running is an understatement. Between learning about the specific products and coverages the firm offers, beginning to prospect leads, and acclimating to a new job,...

Kallas Joins Mayer Brown’s Global Insurance Industry Group in Chicago

Jul 17 2017 // Jay Kallas has joined Mayer Brown’s Chicago office as counsel and member of the Global Insurance Industry group. Kallas has 17 years of industry experience and formerly was with Drinker Biddle & Reath. He...

Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation Expands Midwest Division Board

Jul 17 2017 // The Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation Midwest Division has appointed two new members to its executive committee. Sabrina Hart will serve as chair of the board of directors and Emily Hathcoat will serve as vice...

Nonstandard Auto Insurance Market Continues on Downward Path: A.M. Best

Jul 13 2017 // Loss ratios and operating ratios for the U.S. private passenger nonstandard auto insurance market fell to their worst levels in a decade, according to a report from A.M. Best. The results for the population of insurers...

Individual Health Insurance Market Stabilizing, Not Collapsing: Kaiser

Jul 12 2017 // Insurer financial data through the first quarter of 2017 suggest the individual health insurance market has been stabilizing and insurers in this market are regaining profitability, finds a new analysis from the Kaiser...

Soft Rates Begin to Hit Results – But Pain Continues at Mid-Year Renewals: Willis Re

Jul 11 2017 // Despite the deterioration many reinsurers saw in the first quarter, mid-year renewals continued their downward pricing trajectory, according to Willis Re in a recent report. Indeed, underlying loss and expense ratios for...

Does Consumer Watchdog Founder Want Asimov-like Rules for Robot Cars?

Jul 10 2017 // Powered by InsuranceJournal.tv A virtual grin arose on the face of Harvey Rosenfield with the mention of Isaac Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics. The mention was made during a phone call, but the overwhelming...

State of P/C Insurance Industry, Part 1: The Fate of ‘Hard Market’ Agencies (and Companies)

Jul 10 2017 // Property/casualty (P/C) insurance and group benefits industry is changing faster than ever. Many factors are the parents of such change. In part one of this two part series, I will focus on the more traditional aspects and...

Burand’s State of P/C Insurance Industry Part 2: How to Pick Winners as More Carriers Consolidate or Waste Away

Jul 9 2017 // Editor’s Note: This is the second of two articles by Burand based on his most recent 50-page whitepaper, State of the P&C Insurance Industry 2017. The whitepaper is available from Insurance Journal’s...