Latest Trends Headlines

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

Tennessee Insurance Dept. Wraps Up 2016 With Disciplinary Actions Against 5 Agents

Jan 24 2017 // The Tennessee Department of Commerce & Insurance (TDCI) has taken disciplinary actions including fines totaling more than $77,000, license revocation and other punishments against five Tennessee insurance licensees for...

Texas Stamping Office: Upward Trend Continues for Surplus Lines

Jan 24 2017 // Overall, 2016 ended on a positive note for the U.S. excess and surplus lines insurance industry, according to the Surplus Lines Stamping Office of Texas (SLTX). Nationally, nearly $26 billion in surplus lines insurance...

Alabama Saw 25% Increase in Fatal Wrecks in 2016

Jan 24 2017 // Researchers say the number of fatal traffic crashes in Alabama increased by nearly 25 percent last year. Citing a recent University of Alabama study, The Tuscaloosa News reports that 1,058 people died in crashes statewide...

Majority of Consumers Say They Would Welcome Robotic Agents in the Future

Jan 23 2017 // However, Buyers Want Blended Human-Digital Experience for Complex Issues Seven in 10 consumers around the world would welcome robo-advisory services — computer-generated advice and services that are independent of a...

U.S. Floods, Other Major Climate Events Rack Up $46 Billion in Cost, 138 Lives in 2016

Jan 23 2017 // During 2016, the United States experienced 15 weather and climate disasters with insured and uninsured losses exceeding $1 billion each across the United States. Overall, these events resulted in the deaths of 138 people...

Top 25 Insurers: P/C Direct Premium Written Up 3.9 Percent

Jan 23 2017 // Direct premium written (DPW) for property/casualty insurance companies continues to increase, albeit gradually. At year-end 2015, approximately $585 billion of DPW was reported, a record-high for the industry. For 2015,...

How to Grow Your Insurance Agency in 2017

Jan 23 2017 // Growing a successful agency isn’t always easy in today’s world. While you likely created a business plan when you first launched your insurance agency, you might not have looked at it recently. As the insurance...

California Workers’ Comp Sees Sharp Increase in ALAE Costs, Report Shows

Jan 23 2017 // Allocated loss adjustment expense costs have increased sharply over the last several years despite implementation of many of the components of a workers’ compensation reform law intended to reduce total loss...

North Carolina Rate Bureau Withdraws Dwelling Rate Increase of 19.6% over Data Error

Jan 20 2017 // The North Carolina Rate Bureau is alerting all member companies that it has withdrawn its request for a 19.6 percent rate increase on dwelling policies due to a data error on its Dwelling Policy Program revisions announced...

Soft Market Is Main Factor Limiting Growth of UK MGAs: Survey

Jan 20 2017 // Soft market conditions have replaced regulation and compliance as the main factor affecting growth for UK managing general agents (MGA) in 2017, said a survey of members of the London-based Managing General Agents’...

Ratings Outlook for GuideOne Insurance Revised to Negative: A.M. Best

Jan 19 2017 // A.M. Best has revised the outlooks to negative from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) of “a” of the members of the...

Expect the Unexpected in U.S. Casualty Insurance Market in 2017: Marsh

Jan 19 2017 // Insurers and customers are increasingly embracing the Internet of Things but greater reliance on these technologies could bring problems that ripple through an entire connected system. The unintended consequences from...

White Mountain’s OneBeacon Reported to Be Up for Sale

Jan 18 2017 // OneBeacon Insurance Group Ltd., the specialty insurer controlled by White Mountains Insurance Group Ltd., is exploring a sale, people familiar with the matter said. The Bermuda-based company recently began working with...

High-Flying Drone Market Comes Down to Earth Earlier Than Expected

Jan 18 2017 // Attendees at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this month could play around with a dizzying array of unmanned aerial vehicles. Drones that take selfies. Drones equipped with thermal imaging cameras to see...

26% of Natural Disaster Economic Losses in 2016 Were Insured: Aon Benfield Cat Report

Jan 17 2017 // Overall, just 26 percent ($54 billion) of overall economic losses caused by natural disasters worldwide during 2016 were covered by insurance as a higher percentage of damage occurred in areas with a lower insurance...

6 Key Trends in Workplace Litigation for 2017

Jan 13 2017 // The environment for employment litigation has more than ever been shaped by Supreme Court judges and settlements for wage and hour class actions rose in 2016 while those for other employment-related claims fell, according...

More Drug Companies Vow to Limit Price Increases

Jan 13 2017 // Grappling with a backlash against high U.S. prescription drug prices, more pharmaceutical companies are pledging to limit annual increases to under 10 percent – but the tactic is doing little to salve critics,...

Supply Chain Risks Underinsured in APAC: Zurich Insurance/BCI Survey

Jan 13 2017 // Six out of 10 organizations in Asia Pacific experienced at least one supply chain disruption in the past year, with one in four incidents costing more than US$1 million, according to a survey conducted by the Business...

Reinsurance Capacity Still Outpaces Demand Growth: Aon Benfield

Jan 12 2017 // Capacity continues to outpace the growth of reinsurance demand despite insurers’ continued efforts to optimize their view of reinsurance as capital and expand into growing lines of business and innovation, according...

2017 Cyber Risks to Intensify as Hackers Become More Cunning: Report

Jan 11 2017 // Top cyber threats during 2017 are expected to include nation state cyber espionage, a rise in data integrity attacks and an increase in attacks harnessing Internet of Things (IoT) devices, according to a report published...