Latest Trends Headlines

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

Where Homeowners Rates Are Rising—and Who Is Raising Them Most

Jan 24 2025 // According to a new analysis of homeowners insurance rates, some Midwest states saw the biggest jumps in premiums last year—and American Family Insurance topped a list of 10 insurers ranked by average rate change. The...

Moody’s Expects LA Wildfires to Increase Property Insurance Costs Across State

Jan 23 2025 // Moody’s Ratings said in a report on Thursday that it expects the Los Angeles wildfires to increase property insurance costs across California. According to Moody’s, the state’s already noticeable...

OPTIS: 2024 Insurance Agency M&A Down 10%, Highlighted by 3 Large Deals

Jan 23 2025 // The total number of insurance agency mergers and acquisitions in 2024 was down 10% compared to 2023, according to investment banking and financial consulting firm OPTIS Partners. OPTIS Partners’ M&A database...

EU Is Set to Shrink ESG Reporting Rules Amid French Demands

Jan 22 2025 // The European Union is set to scale back its highly contested ESG reporting requirements, as France prepares to unveil a formal proposal seeking to limit the scope of the regulatory framework. The French government is...

New York Proposes Plan to Stabilize Broken Taxi Insurance Market

Jan 22 2025 // New York Governor Kathy Hochul proposed measures to stabilize the city’s taxi and rideshare insurance industry, which is reeling from the insolvency of its largest provider American Transit Insurance Co. Two of the...

North Carolina Settles on 15% Increase in HO Rates

Jan 21 2025 // RALEIGH. N.C. (AP) — Base rates for North Carolina homeowners’ insurance premiums will increase on average by about 15% by mid-2026 as part of a settlement reached by the state Insurance Department and the...

Smoke, Coverage Issues Cloud Wildfire Forecast: $35-$45B Losses Insured

Jan 17 2025 // CoreLogic announced a preliminary range of insured losses for the Eaton and Palisades Fires in Los Angeles of $35 billion to $45 billion, but there are a lot of factors that could change the numbers. “We don’t...

Cyber Insurance Market to Expand as Risks Evolve: Gallagher

Jan 17 2025 // While 2024 brought record-breaking data-breach costs and evolving cyber risk, all signs point to stable rates and ample capacity in 2025. Intense competition among cyber insurance carriers has resulted in higher limits,...

Actuary Group Forecasts Climate Change to Have Massive GDP Hit Without Policy Action

Jan 17 2025 // Here’s stark warning in a new report from a group of actuaries: the global economy could face a 50% loss in GDP between 2070 and 2090. That is if immediate policy actions on risks posed by climate change are not...

California Workers’ Comp Public Self-Insured Losses Rise Despite Claim Volume Decline

Jan 17 2025 // Increases in average medical payments and average indemnity payments drove public self-insureds’ total paid losses up last year even though the number of claims fell, a new report shows. The California Workers’...

Bayer Faces Billions in Payouts for Decades-Old Toxic Mess

Jan 16 2025 // Bayer AG’s Monsanto unit stopped making toxic PCBs a half century ago, but the legal fallout lingers even as many of the building materials made with the chemicals are no longer used in US homes, schools and...

An Increase in Identity Theft, Cybercrime Predicted in 2025

Jan 16 2025 // The forecast for identity theft scams and cybercrime in 2025 is bleak, according to the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC). It’s anticipated there will be reduced support for victims and less law enforcement...

War Anxiety Grips Davos Experts With Ukraine Peace Still Elusive: WEF Survey

Jan 15 2025 // War is the top worry wracking the nerves of risk experts surveyed by the World Economic Forum, despite incoming US President Donald Trump’s vow to end hostilities in Ukraine. “State-based armed conflict”...

Los Angeles Faces Another Day of Extreme Fire Risk as Winds Rise

Jan 14 2025 // Hot, dry winds are pummeling Los Angeles and surrounding areas of Southern California, raising wildfire risks through at least Wednesday as the region reels from blazes that have killed at least 24 people and burned...

Find Out How Salaries & Satisfaction Stack Up: Agency Salary Survey

Jan 14 2025 // We invite ALL retail agency owners, principals, producers, CSRs — the entire agency — to participate in Insurance Journal’s annual independent insurance agency salary survey. Be a part of the industry’s...

Russian Insurer Says US Sanctions Against it Increase Risk of Environmental Disaster

Jan 14 2025 // Russian insurance company Ingosstrakh said on Friday [Jan. 10] that U.S. sanctions against it would increase the risk of environmental disasters. The Biden administration on Friday imposed its broadest package of sanctions...

Russia Expands Response to Biggest Black Sea Fuel Spill in Decades

Jan 14 2025 // Russia has formed a new government commission to coordinate clean up of the biggest spill of oil products in the Black Sea in recent history as the Kremlin continues to assess the full scale of the catastrophe. Two tankers...

With Waters and Mandates Rising, HoneyQuote Adds Flood Insurance Price Tool

Jan 14 2025 // As more policyholders with Florida’s Citizens Property Insurance are statutorily required to purchase flood insurance, another insurance rate-quoting service has gotten in on the act. Officials with HoneyQuote.com...

Insured Losses From Los Angeles Wildfires Rising: $8B to $20B

Jan 9 2025 // Editor’s note: This story has been updated with new AccuWeather total loss estimates. With aerial firefighting returning as strong Southern California winds died down for a bit, damage assessments from a handful of...

Rising US Auto Insurance Rates Are Disproportionately Hurting Classic Car Owners:

Jan 8 2025 // The Meteoric Rise in U.S. Auto Insurance Rates is Being Subsidized by Collector Car Owners According to Classic & Collector Insurer OpenRoad Standard auto insurers continue their efforts to recover from the...