Latest Trends Headlines
All the headlines from our Trends Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Auto Premiums Decline in Ohio; Homeowners Rates Rise
Jan 10 2010 // The Ohio Department of Insurance reports that auto insurance rates in that state declined for the third consecutive year but homeowners rates have risen slightly. The department based its assessments on data released by...
Florida Touts Competitive Workers’ Comp Market Helped by 2003 Tort Reforms
Jan 10 2010 // The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation says that the state’s workers’ compensation insurance market is competitive. In a new report based on data from 2008, the OIR found the Florida market features 251...
Trends for 2010
Jan 10 2010 // Soft Market, Economy, Taxes and the Producer Dilemma on the Frontlines for Agents To be proactive, one needs to understand and exploit current and future trends. Most trends can be predicated by understanding recurring...
Most Property Reinsurance Rates Down at January Renewal As Capital Rebounds
Jan 10 2010 // Reinsurance rates across most lines of property catastrophe business declined at the Jan. 1, 2010 renewal, according to a briefing by Guy Carpenter & Co. LLC. Guy Carpenter’s World Catastrophe Rate on Line (ROL)...
RMS Forecasts Increased Growth for Insurance Linked Securities in 2010
Jan 7 2010 // A bulletin from Risk Management Solutions notes that the fourth quarter of 2009 was the “most active… ever for catastrophe bond issuance, reaching almost $1.1 billion in total volume, eclipsing the previous...
Insurers to Curb Agency Compensation in 2010, Consultant Study Finds
Jan 7 2010 // Total property/casualty insurance agency compensation is expected to decrease slightly in 2010, largely due to contingent commission changes, according to a new compensation study. Four out of 10 insurance companies plan...
Most Property Reinsurance Rates Down at January Renewal As Capital Rebounds
Jan 5 2010 // Reinsurance rates across most lines of property catastrophe business declined at the Jan. 1, 2010 renewal, according to a briefing by Guy Carpenter & Co., LLC. Guy Carpenter’s World Catastrophe Rate on Line...
Washington Not Increasing Minimum Wage in 2010
Dec 31 2009 // Washington’s Department of Labor & Industries reminded employers that for the first time since voters passed an initiative 11 years ago indexing the minimum wage to the Consumer Price Index, the state minimum...
Car Insurance Premiums to Rise for Many Louisiana Drivers
Dec 31 2009 // A law that goes into effect Jan. 1, 2010, increasing the required minimum liability auto insurance coverage is expected to increase insurance rates for more than 1 million Louisiana motorists. Though the change was...
Homeowners Average Insurance Premiums Up Slightly in Ohio
Dec 30 2009 // Ohio Department of Insurance Director Mary Jo Hudson announced that on average Ohioans paid slightly more for homeowners insurance in 2007 than in 2006, according to a report issued by the National Association of Insurance...
Swiss Re Forecasts Increasing Demand for Natural Catastrophe Coverage
Dec 29 2009 // Swiss Re has concluded that, despite the unusually quiet 2009 hurricane season, “overall natural catastrophe losses have increased significantly over time and are expected to grow further. “The premium for our...
Report: Deregulation Made Massachusetts Auto Insurance Market Worse
Dec 28 2009 // The deregulation of the Massachusetts auto insurance market has driven up prices, boosted insurer profits, reduced consumer protections and generally created confusion in the marketplace, according to a new report by the...
Best Revises Samsung Fire Outlook to Positive; Affirms ‘A+’ Ratings
Dec 28 2009 // A.M. Best Co. has revised the outlook to positive from stable and affirmed the financial strength rating (FSR) of ‘A+’ (Superior) and the issuer credit rating (ICR) of “aa” of South Korea’s...
Best Affirms Allstate New Jersey ‘A-‘ Ratings; Outlook Stable
Dec 23 2009 // A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength rating (FSR) of ‘A-‘ (Excellent) and issuer credit ratings (ICR) of “a-” of Allstate New Jersey Insurance Group and its members. The outlook for all...
S&P Revises Outlook on Credit Insurer Coface to Negative
Dec 22 2009 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services said today that it has revised its outlook on the core operating entities of French credit insurance group Coface to negative from stable. The core entities are: —...
Washington Keeps Auto Rate Down $26 Million
Dec 22 2009 // Rate reviews by the Washington State Insurance Commissioner’s office reduced proposed automobile insurance rates by $26 million over the first 10 months of this year, a reduction of about 1 percent. In 2008, the rate...
Best Analyzes AIG; Affirms Most P/C, L&H Ratings; Outlook Negative
Dec 21 2009 // A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength ratings (FSR) and issuer credit ratings (ICR) of most P/C life/health insurance subsidiaries of American International Group, Inc., as well as the ICR of “bbb”...
2009? Mission Accomplished. Now, on to the Next Decade
Dec 20 2009 // 2010 — Can it really be 10 years since the world survived Y2K? Here is a bold prediction … we will survive this present situation, also. In January 2020, we will look back at our current struggles and view them as...
Increasing Benefits Lengthens Workers’ Compensation Claim Duration: Study
Dec 20 2009 // States that increase the maximum weekly benefit for workers compensation can expect to see injured workers with temporary total disability making claims for longer, almost a week longer, according to a new study released...
Trends For Insurance Industry To Watch…
Dec 20 2009 // The PricewaterhouseCoopers report suggests that successful insurers will be those that carefully weigh the following considerations: Consolidation: The U.S. insurance market remains highly fragmented, and the strong...