Latest Trends Headlines
All the headlines from our Trends Topic Page, ordered by recency.
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...
A.M. Best Revises Outlook to Negative for New York’s Country-Wide
Jul 12 2017 // A.M. Best has revised its outlook to negative from stable for Country-Wide Insurance Company, a family-owned auto insurance company based in New York, N.Y. A.M. Best also affirmed Country-Wide’s Financial Strength...
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...
Carrier Poll Shows Many Agents Expect Minor Tech Disruption by 2020
Jul 11 2017 // A new poll conducted by a Seattle, Wash.-based carrier that asked independent insurance agents what’s ahead in 2020 showed that roughly half of agents expect technology disruption to have a minor impact on their...
Insurers Say Legal Malpractice Claims Hold Steady But Defense Costs Rise
Jul 11 2017 // Most leading legal malpractice insurers saw their claims level off in 2016 although their cost to defend claims continued to escalate. A study by insurance broker Ames & Gough finds that while the number of new...
Report: The Southeast’s Storm Surge Risk and Florida’s Hurricane Wake-Up Call
Jul 11 2017 // The Southeast has seen its fair share of natural disasters and flooding in the last several years, including two hurricanes in Florida last year – the first hurricanes to hit the state in more than a decade. But none of...
S&P Lowers Ratings of Allied World After Acquisition by Fairfax; Outlook Stable
Jul 10 2017 // S&P Global Ratings lowered its long-term counterparty credit and senior debt ratings on Allied World Assurance Co. Holdings AG to ‘BBB-‘ from ‘BBB+’, following the completion of the...
Wisconsin’s Church Mutual: Outlook Upgraded; Sensor Technology Recognized
Jul 10 2017 // Merrill, Wis.-based Church Mutual Insurance Co. and its subsidiaries CM Vantage Specialty Insurance Co. and CM Regent Insurance Co. have earned a “positive” outlook for long-term issuer credit rating by A.M....
Florida’s Citizens Requests Rate Increases, Policy Changes for 2018
Jul 10 2017 // Homeowners in South Florida, as well as in many other parts of the state, can expect another rate increase next year from the state-run insurer of last resort. Citizens Board of Governors approved recommended rates and...
5.4M U.S. Homes at Risk from Sea Level Rise, Report Using Census Data Shows
Jul 6 2017 // Nearly 10 million people living in 5.4 million homes have a high risk from rising sea levels and will be adversely impacted by climate change, according to a new report that takes data from U.S. Census tracts near the...
Global Premium Growth Slows in 2016 – with China as Exception: Swiss Re
Jul 6 2017 // Global insurance premiums increased by 3.1 percent in real terms during 2016, down from growth of 4.3 percent reported in 2015, according to Swiss Re Institute’s sigma study. The report described last year’s...
Texas Stamping Office: Surplus Lines Cyber Growth Keeps Up with Demand
Jun 29 2017 // In Texas and across the nation, the surplus lines insurance market is keeping up with the increase in demand for cyber liability protection, according to the Surplus Lines Stamping Office of Texas (SLTX). Surplus lines...
Increase in P/C Insurers’ Losses in 2017 Will Again Be Driven by Auto: S&P
Jun 29 2017 // Private auto net incurred losses will increase by nearly 7 percent in 2017 to a new record of approximately $154 billion, reflecting elevated volume and costs of claims, according to a new S&P Global market...
California Broker Launches National Expansion into Captive Insurance Market
Jun 29 2017 // Sacramento, Calif.-based Owen-Dunn Insurance Services has embarked on a national expansion with the launch of ODI Group Captive to meet demand from mid-size business owners for captive insurance. In addition to creating...
Auto Insurance Market to Shrink by 70% by 2050: KPMG
Jun 29 2017 // Autonomous vehicle technology, a rise in on-demand transportation and a shifting of liability to manufacturers will shrink the auto insurance sector by more than 70 percent or $137 billion by 2050, according to updated...
Post-Disaster, BP Stakes Future on Deepwater Despite Surging Shale
Jun 28 2017 // About 300 BP workers commute 150 miles by helicopter from the Louisiana coast to a deep-sea drilling platform in the Gulf of Mexico that can produce more oil in a day than a West Texas rig can pump in a year. On the deck...
Insured Loss Estimates for Cyclone Debbie Rise to US$1.1B: PERILS
Jun 28 2017 // The estimate for the property insurance market’s loss for tropical cyclone Debbie has risen to A$1.4 billion (US$1.1 billion) from an initial estimate of A$1.12 billion, according to PERILS, the independent...
A.M. Best Revises Outlooks to Negative for Georgia Farm Bureau Group Members
Jun 28 2017 // A.M. Best has revised the outlooks to negative from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of B+ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term ICR) of “bbb-” of Georgia Farm Bureau...
Texas Stamping Office: Surplus Lines Insurance Premium Up for 2017
Jun 23 2017 // Data collected by the Surplus Lines Stamping Office of Texas (SLTX) shows that insurance premium amounts recorded in May 2017 are higher than totals recorded in May of 2016 or 2015. The information was presented at the...
Survey: Agents Suggest How Carriers Can Move from ‘Good’ to ‘Great’
Jun 23 2017 // One would expect to see high levels of satisfaction between an independent agency and its top carrier, but that isn’t always the case. Peeling back the layers usually reveals fertile ground for improvement and shows...
