Latest Trends Headlines

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

Canada’s Intact Financial Caps Decade of Acquisitions with $9.4 Billion RSA Deal

Nov 19 2020 // After a decade of buying up rivals to become Canada’s largest property and casualty insurer, Intact Financial Corp. is looking across the Atlantic with its biggest deal yet. Intact sealed an agreement Wednesday to...

S&P Finds U.S. Insurers Made Modest Gains in Diversity Over Decade

Nov 18 2020 // The U.S. insurance industry has achieved only modest gains in increasing diversity over the last 10 years, according to government data compiled by S&P Global Market Intelligence. S&P found that the percentage of...

Is the Aviation Insurance Market Ready for a COVID-19 Vaccine?

Nov 17 2020 // As the development, and possible mass production, of COVID-19 (C-19) vaccines gather speed, the transportation and logistics industry will need to turn its attention to how the product can be safely and efficiently...

Ten Largest Insurance Markets Likely to See 4.5% Drop in GDP During 2020

Nov 17 2020 // The world’s 10 largest insurance markets are cumulatively expected to see their gross domestic product (GDP) decrease by 4.5% in 2020 compared to 2019 because of COVID-19, according to a new Insurance Information...

Zeta’s Total Onshore U.S. Insured Losses Could Rise to $5B: RMS

Nov 16 2020 // Catastrophe risk modeler RMS has estimated that insured losses from Hurricane Zeta could rise to as high as $5 billion in the U.S. That figure is slightly higher than estimates announced earlier by catastrophe modelers AIR...

Aon Invests $30 Million to Create 10,000 Apprenticeships Nationwide by 2030

Nov 12 2020 // Global insurance broker Aon said it is expanding its corporate apprenticeship program with an investment of $30 million over the next five years. With this expansion, Aon hopes to develop a nationwide network of employers...

Zurich Insurance Reports Sales Growth, Higher Rates, Modest COVID-19 Claims

Nov 12 2020 // Zurich Insurance Group saw increased commercial lines insurance sales and a modest impact from COVID-19 related claims for the first nine months of the year, according to its third quarter report. Growth was supported by...

Florida Regulator Calls for Further Workers’ Comp Rate Decrease

Nov 10 2020 // Florida’s insurance regulator has called for a further decrease to proposed workers’ compensation insurance rates in response to a filing by the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI). In an order...

Rating Outlooks for United Equitable, American Heartland Insurance Revised to Negative

Nov 6 2020 // AM Best has revised the outlooks to negative from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of C++ (Marginal) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) of “b” for United Equitable...

RMS: Total Onshore U.S. Insured Zeta Losses Could Rise to $5B

Nov 5 2020 // Catastrophe risk modeler RMS has estimated that insured on losses from Hurricane Zeta could rise to as high as $5 billion in the U.S. That figure is slightly higher than estimates announced by catastrophe modelers AIR...

U.S. P/C Insurer Impairments Rise Slightly in 2019: AM Best

Nov 5 2020 // The U.S. property/casualty industry saw 13 new insurance company impairments in 2019, two more than in 2018, involving entities operating in a mix of lines of business and a variety of states, according to a new AM Best...

California’s Temporary Total Disability Rates for 2021 Increasing

Nov 2 2020 // The California Division of Workers’ Compensation announced that the 2021 minimum and maximum temporary total disability rates will increase on Jan. 1, 2021. The minimum TTD rate will increase from $194.91 to $203.44...

Michigan Insurance Market at a Glance

Nov 2 2020 // The reform of Michigan’s auto insurance market, which went into effect on July 1, 2020, brought the promise of much-needed premium relief for Michigan drivers. An April 2019 study by the Insurance Research Council...

1 in 4 Businesses Has Experienced Cyber Event, Travelers Survey Finds

Nov 2 2020 // Nearly one in four respondents (22%) out of more than 1,200 business leaders surveyed in 2020 Travelers’ Cyber Risk Index said their firm was the victim of a cyber event — the highest percentage since the...

Agency E&O Survey: More See Premiums on the Rise

Nov 2 2020 // According to Insurance Journal’s 2020 Agency E&O survey, slightly more than half of all respondents (50.2%) saw an increase in their E&O renewal premium from 2019 to 2020, and 53.8% expect another increase at...

Florida Property Insurance Market Inches Closer to Crisis – Part 2

Oct 30 2020 // The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation is monitoring the state’s property insurance situation that is seen as in a crisis by those in the industry. The regulator said the insurance market has been buffeted by...

Florida Property Insurance Market Inches Closer to Crisis – Part 1

Oct 29 2020 // After years of warnings that the Florida property insurance market was heading towards an availability crisis, many in the industry say the moment of reckoning has arrived. They blame unchecked claims litigation from...

Hanover Insurance Enters Maryland Personal Lines Insurance Market

Oct 27 2020 // The Hanover Insurance Group Inc. (THG) has expanded its business in Maryland to include personal lines insurance and appointed a group of independent agents in the state to serve its growing customer base. The Hanover has...

W.R. Berkley Says Rate Increases Averaging 14.5% Contributed to Solid 3Q Results

Oct 26 2020 // W.R. Berkley Corp.’s 2020 third-quarter financial results landed on the strong side despite a dip in net income and more COVID-19 losses, a result the company credits to rate hikes and underwriting discipline. The...

Remote Workforce to Double in 2021 Due to Improved Productivity: CIO Survey

Oct 26 2020 // The percentage of workers around the world that is permanently working from home is expected to double in 2021 as productivity has increased during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a survey from U.S.-based Enterprise...