Latest Trends Headlines

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

Medical Malpractice Liability Premiums Remain Flat: Survey

Oct 10 2016 // The medical malpractice insurance industry’s premiums remain essentially flat, having dropped only very slightly (0.1 percent) from last year across the industry, according to the 2016 Medical Liability Monitor...

Ohio Home, Auto Insurance Rates Up Slightly but Still Among Nation’s Lowest

Oct 10 2016 // The Ohio Department of Insurance (ODI) reports that average premiums for auto and home insurance in the state rose in 2015 but not by much. The average rate changes in 2015 for Ohio’s top 10 homeowners and private...

Why Claims Under Americans with Disabilities Act Are Rising

Oct 7 2016 // Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title III lawsuits are up 63 percent over 2015, according to law firm Seyfarth Shaw. ADA Title III prohibits businesses open to the public from discriminating on the basis of...

Ag Cooperatives’ Profits Rise in 2015 to a Record $7B

Oct 7 2016 // Agriculture cooperatives posted record profits last year highlighting the business model the U.S. Department of Agriculture says provides more than 2 million jobs. The USDA says in a report on Oct. 4 net income for the...

The Hanover Expands BOP for Small Businesses, Increases Coverage Limits

Oct 7 2016 // The Hanover Insurance Group demonstrates further commitment to supporting small businesses with significant enhancements to its business owner’s policy (BOP) base form and product offerings, adding coverages and...

P/C Insurers Report $1.5B Net Underwriting Loss in First Half of 2016

Oct 5 2016 // Private U.S. property/casualty insurers reported a $1.5 billion net underwriting loss in the first half of 2016— the first year-to-date net underwriting loss in more than three years— and saw their net income after...

Outlooks Revised to Negative for Texas Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance, Subsidiary

Oct 5 2016 // A.M. Best has revised the outlooks to negative from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings of “a” of Texas Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance Co....

London Insurance Market Prepares to Hold Catastrophe Response Test

Oct 5 2016 // The London insurance market plans to test its response this month to a major catastrophe on the scale of the 9/11 attacks, the chairman of insurer Hiscox said on Tuesday. While insurers have coped with regular hurricanes,...

Medical Marijuana Question OK’d for Future Oklahoma Ballot

Oct 4 2016 // A petition that would legalize medical marijuana in Oklahoma will go before voters in a future election after a 10-day period that allowed for challenges over the validity of the signatures expired this week. Supporters of...

China Insurance Market Ripe for Digital Disruption: Viewpoint

Oct 4 2016 // China’s tech giants — Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent — increasingly have a finger in every part of the economy. So why aren’t they bigger participants in what should be an easy sell online:...

Florida Approves Increases for Citizens Commercial Property Rates

Oct 4 2016 // The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) has issued an order establishing the 2017 commercial property rates for Citizens Property Insurance Corporation. Rates are going up for all accounts except the Commercial...

Florida Regulators Approve Rate Increase for Citizens Policyholders

Oct 3 2016 // Rates are going up for many Florida homeowners. The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation has approved a 6.4 percent overall rate increase for 2017 for Citizens Property Insurance Corp. homeowners’ multiperil...

Special Report: Best Agencies to Work For 2016

Oct 3 2016 // The votes were tallied and the results are in for the 2016 Best Independent Insurance Agency to Work For survey by Insurance Journal. The owners of the Best Agencies to Work For in 2016 highlight different programs or...

P/C Direct Premium Written Up 4.3 Percent: Demotech

Oct 3 2016 // 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,...

Maryland’s Amended Premium Increase Notice Requirement to Take Effect

Sep 30 2016 // The reenacted Maryland Insurance Article set to take effect on Saturday, Oct. 1, is expected to lift the administrative burden and lack of clarity caused by mandatory notification of minor premium increases, according to a...

Global Risk Partners Buys Marshall Wooldridge, a UK Broker with Growth Plans

Sep 27 2016 // Global Risk Partners Limited (GRP), the acquisitive insurance broking and managing general agent investment vehicle, has acquired Marshall Wooldridge, a UK commercial insurance broker which controls in excess of £20...

Business Interruption Tops List of Risks Facing Global Organizations: Survey

Sep 26 2016 // Business interruption, property damage and general liability are the top three risks faced by businesses, non-governmental organizations and governmental agencies operating outside the U.S., according to the Summer/Fall...

Fire Season in Wyoming’s Yellowstone Seen as One of Worst in Decades

Sep 26 2016 // The wildfire season this summer in Yellowstone, Wyo. is being called the worst in decades. A larger percentage of Yellowstone National Park burned this summer than in any year since 1988. The wildfire season of 2003 was...

Demand for Environmental Impairment Liability Cover Rises in Europe: Marsh

Sep 23 2016 // There has been a marked increase in the number of companies purchasing environmental impairment liability (EIL) cover across Europe in recent years, mainly due to an increase in regulation and buyer awareness, according to...

South Carolina to Provide $35M in Aid to 1,250 Farmers Hit by 2015 Floods

Sep 20 2016 // Nearly 1,250 farmers in South Carolina will get more than $35 million in aid for their losses during last October’s massive floods. The Department of Agriculture said in a news release Thursday that 88 farmers will...