Latest Trends Headlines
All the headlines from our Trends Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Hartford’s Q2 Core Earnings Decline 38% to $144M; Net Loss Widens
Jul 31 2014 // The Hartford Financial Services Group said Wednesday its 2014 second quarter net loss widened to $467 million, compared to a net loss of $190 million during last year’s second quarter. The results were hit by $617...
Last Chance to Participate: Take the Market & Financial Survey Now
Jul 30 2014 // How are agencies targeting new business today? Will historical growth rates be sustainable? And just how much do agencies need to reinvest to achieve desired growth and enable perpetuation? These are some of the questions...
U.S. Attorneys in Dakotas Turning Up Heat on Health Care Fraud
Jul 30 2014 // The top federal prosecutors from South Dakota and North Dakota say they have increased their efforts to fight health care fraud. U.S. Attorney Brendan Johnson of South Dakota said he has restructured his office to allow...
Mass. Auto Insurance Rates Climb Back Up Despite Deregulation
Jul 29 2014 // Auto insurance rates that fell sharply after deregulation in Massachusetts are climbing again. The Boston Globe reports that five years after Massachusetts began to allow insurers to set their own rates, the average...
S&P Report Finds Volume Increases as Prices Drop in the ILS Market
Jul 29 2014 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services will publish its annual “Global Reinsurance Highlights” publication to coincide with the 2014 Reinsurance Rendez-Vous in September. S&P said the report would...
QBE Falls Most in 7 Months Amid 18% Profit Decline Forecast
Jul 29 2014 // Australia’s QBE Insurance Group Ltd. slumped the most in seven months after forecasting an 18 percent decline in first-half earnings due to higher claims in Latin America and competition with other insurers. Net...
Best Affirms Lloyd’s, Lloyd’s (China) Ratings; Outlook Positive
Jul 28 2014 // A.M. Best has affirmed the financial strength rating of ‘A’ (Excellent) and the issuer credit ratings (ICR) of “a+” of Lloyd’s and Lloyd’s Insurance Company (China) Limited (LICCL)...
Aon Plunges Most Since 2012 on Reinsurance Revenue Decline
Jul 28 2014 // Aon Plc, the world’s second-largest insurance broker by market value, fell the most since 2012 after revenue missed estimates as reinsurance sales declined. Aon slipped $4.65, or 5.1 percent, to $86.32 at 4:03 p.m....
Survey: Michigan Business Owners Optimistic About Future
Jul 25 2014 // Owners of Michigan’s small and medium-size businesses have voiced their confidence in Michigan’s economic future in the latest Future Business Index, published in partnership with the Michigan Business Network...
Insurers File for 9.1% West Virginia Workers’ Compensation Loss Cost Decrease
Jul 25 2014 // The National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) has filed a proposed reduction in workers’ compensation loss cost rates in West Virginia – the tenth reduction in 10 years. NCCI, West Virginia’s rating...
AIA First-Half New Business Value Rises 23%, Led by China
Jul 25 2014 // AIA Group Ltd., the second-largest Asia-based insurer, posted a 23 percent increase in new business value in the first half, beating analyst estimates and exceeding the full-year figure for 2010 when it went public. The...
Airline War Risk Insurance Expected to Rise Due to Global Conflicts
Jul 24 2014 // Insurers are expected to hike war risk premiums for airlines following losses due to global conflicts, including the downing of a Malaysia airplane over Ukraine, insurance rating agency A.M. Best Company said on...
1 in 4 Young Adults Don’t Leave Home; Trend Expected to Rise
Jul 24 2014 // The share of young adults living with parents or other family members in the U.S. continues to grow in the aftermath of the most severe recession in the post- World War II era. A record 57 million Americans, or 18.1...
Ascent Increases U.S. Medical Billings E&O Limits, Adds Reputational Harm Cover
Jul 24 2014 // Ascent Underwriting, a managing general agent (MGA) specializing in emerging and professional risks, has enhanced its CyberPro medical billings errors and omissions product and increased limit availability to $5...
Chairman Says Vietnam Insurer PVI Holdings 1st Half Profit to Beat Forecast
Jul 23 2014 // PVI Holdings, Vietnam’s second- largest listed insurer, forecast first-half earnings will beat its target by 19 percent, buoyed by an increase in non-life- insurance revenue. After-tax profit for the first six months...
Travelers Posts $683M Q2 Profit, Misses Estimates as Catastrophe Losses Rise
Jul 22 2014 // Property and casualty insurer Travelers Cos. Inc.’s quarterly earnings fell short of analysts’ estimates as hail and wind storms in the United States increased catastrophe losses. The company, a Dow Jones...
S&P Raises Liberty Mutual’s Ratings; Outlook Revised to Stable on NICO Deal
Jul 21 2014 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services announced that it has raised its ratings on Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. to ‘A/A-1’ from ‘A-/A-2’, as well as its ratings on parent company Liberty...
Typhoon Rammasun, Strongest Storm in Decades, Kills 18 in China
Jul 21 2014 // The strongest typhoon to hit southern China in four decades has killed 18 people, the government said Sunday, while in the Philippines the death toll from the storm’s earlier destruction rose to 94. Typhoon Rammasun...
Q1 P/C Direct Premium Written Up 3.5 Percent
Jul 21 2014 // Direct premium written (DPW) for property/casualty insurance companies continues to increase, albeit gradually. At year-end 2013, nearly $545 billion of DPW was reported, a record high for the industry. For 2013, total DPW...
Despite Increases Ohio Auto, Home Insurance Rates Still Among the Lowest
Jul 21 2014 // Lieutenant Governor and Department of Insurance Director Mary Taylor says Ohio’s average auto and homeowner’s rate remain among the lowest in the country despite increases taken in the past two years. In 2013,...
