Latest Trends Headlines
All the headlines from our Trends Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Massachusetts Bill Aims to Open Up Rate Filings for Discussion
Feb 22 2016 // The Massachusetts Senate earlier this month passed a legislative amendment that would open up home insurers’ rate filings for public discussion. The amendment was proposed by Massachusetts State Senator Mike Barrett,...
Future of Tennessee Workers’ Comp Option in Question Amid Lawmaker Scandal
Feb 22 2016 // Legislation to create a workers’ compensation alternative in Tennessee is already facing serious setbacks in the new legislative session, despite being amended in 2015 and refiled in 2016. An emerging scandal...
California Hospital Workers’ Comp Report Shows Claim Severity on Rise
Feb 22 2016 // California workers’ compensation claim severity continues to increase, while claims frequency declines, according a newly released report. The latest California hospital report benchmarking workers’ comp costs...
P/C Direct Premium Written Up 4.2 Percent
Feb 22 2016 // Direct premium written (DPW) for property/casualty insurance companies continues to increase, albeit gradually, according to a Demotech analysis. At year-end 2014, more than $570 billion of DPW was reported, a record-high...
UK’s Aviva Beefs Up Fraud Screening in Commercial Motor Business
Feb 19 2016 // Aviva detected fraud in almost 2,200 commercial motor policies in 2015, using various anti-fraud tools, the London-based insurer revealed. But the company is taking its fight against fraud to a new level — by...
Allianz Q4 2015 Profit Rises to $1.6B on Cat Claims; Lower Than Analyst Estimates
Feb 19 2016 // Allianz SE missed analyst estimates for fourth-quarter profit because of claims from natural catastrophes. Net income at Europe’s biggest insurer increased to 1.42 billion euros ($1.6 billion) in the quarter from...
Florida State Troopers Report 186 Deaths from Hit-and-Run Crashes in 2015
Feb 19 2016 // State troopers say 186 people died in hit-and-run crashes in Florida last year. According to statistics released Monday by the Florida Highway Patrol, more than half the fatalities last year were pedestrians. Officials say...
Kansas Lawmakers Consider Increasing Speed Limit to 80 MPH
Feb 17 2016 // Legislative committees are considering bills that would allow the Kansas Department of Transportation to raise the state’s highest speed limit on separated, multiple-lane highways from 75 to 80 miles per hour. The...
Massachusetts Bill Aims to Open Up Home Rate Filings for Discussion
Feb 16 2016 // The Massachusetts Senate recently passed a legislative amendment that would open up home insurers’ rate filings for public discussion. The amendment was proposed by Massachusetts State Senator Mike Barrett,...
A.M. Best Revises Outlook to Negative for West Virginia Mutual Insurance Co.
Feb 16 2016 // A.M. Best has revised the outlook to negative from stable and affirmed the financial strength rating of A- (Excellent) and the issuer credit rating of “a-” of West Virginia Mutual Insurance Company (WVMIC)...
Pennsylvania OKs Average Workers’ Comp Loss Cost Decrease of 0.9%
Feb 12 2016 // The Pennsylvania Compensation Rating Bureau (PCRB) said the Pennsylvania Insurance Department has approved PCRB’s filing which calls for an overall average workers’ compensation loss cost decrease of 0.90...
U.S. Safety Rules Key to Driverless Car Future: Google
Feb 12 2016 // Alphabet Inc.’s Google unit told U.S. auto safety regulators that the government’s interpretation of motor vehicle safety rules is “extremely important” to its further development of fully...
Insurance Agency Growth, Profits Slipped in 2015 on Oil Bust, Soft Market: Reagan
Feb 9 2016 // Insurance agency and brokerage organic revenue growth slowed to 4.6 percent for 2015, according to the latest Reagan Consulting Organic Growth and Profitability (OGP) survey. That was down from the organic growth of 6.2...
Future of Tennessee Workers’ Comp Option in Question Amid Lawmaker Scandal
Feb 9 2016 // Legislation to create a workers’ compensation alternative in Tennessee is already facing serious setbacks in the just started legislative session, despite being amended in 2015 and refiled in 2016. An emerging...
California Hospital Workers’ Comp Report Shows Claim Severity on Rise
Feb 8 2016 // California workers’ compensation claim severity continues to increase, while claims frequency declines, according a newly released report. The latest California hospital report benchmarking workers’ comp costs...
Texas Stamping Office: U.S. Surplus Lines Growth Continued in 2015
Feb 8 2016 // Collectively, the surplus lines insurance service/stamping offices across the country processed a record-breaking $25 billion in premium in 2015, exhibiting 3.6 percent growth over the $24.2 billion in premium processed...
10 Trends in U.S. Casualty Markets in 2016: Marsh
Feb 8 2016 // The sharing economy, expanded litigation, surplus capital, custom account underwriting and further consolidation are likely to challenge the U.S. casualty insurance marketplace in 2016, according to broker Marsh. Marsh...
P/C Insurer Results: Profit Inched Up in First 9 Months of 2015
Feb 5 2016 // Private U.S. property/casualty insurers’ net income after taxes grew to $44.0 billion in the first nine months of 2015 from $37.8 billion in nine-months 2014, with insurers’ overall profitability as measured by...
Chinese Industrial Firms Will Lead Insurance M&A in 2016, to Grow Beyond Asia
Feb 5 2016 // China’s biggest industrial companies want to buy insurers in 2016 as they seek to grow outside Asia as the domestic economy slows and falling insurance rates prompt more firms to do deals, according to Willis Towers...
RenaissanceRe’s Q4 Operating Income Is $135M, Down from $140.3M in Q4 2014
Feb 4 2016 // Bermuda-based RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd. reported fourth quarter 2015 operating income available to RenaissanceRe common shareholders of $135.0 million, or $3.07 per diluted common share, compared to $140.3 million, or...
