Latest Trends Headlines
All the headlines from our Trends Topic Page, ordered by recency.
WCIRB May Reduce Rate Increase to 11.6%
Sep 6 2012 // Committees for the Workers’ Compensation Rating Bureau looking at data based on the savings promised by a bill to reform the state’s workers comp system may be recommending an adjustment to WCIRB’s...
Swiss Re Report Analyzes Rise in Flood Losses – $15 Billion and Counting
Sep 6 2012 // A new report from Swiss Re underscores the fact the “insured flood losses have increased from $1–2 billion in 1970 to $15 billion in 2011, which it describes as an “alarming rate” while posing...
Personal Lines Rates Inch Up in August: MarketScout
Sep 5 2012 // Rates for personal lines insurance rose 3 percent in August 2012 compared to rates in August 2011, reported the national property/casualty insurance exchange MarketScout. “Homeowners rates increased by 3 percent on...
Moody’s Maintains Stable Outlook on Global Reinsurance Industry
Sep 5 2012 // Moody’s Investors Service has maintained a stable outlook for the global reinsurance industry. Moody’s said the outlook “expresses our expectations for the fundamental credit conditions in the industry...
Moody’s Changes EU Rating Outlook to Negative
Sep 4 2012 // Moody’s Investors Service has changed its outlook on the ‘Aaa’ rating of the European Union to negative, warning it might downgrade the bloc if it decides to cut the ratings on the EU’s four biggest...
Massachusetts Strikes Down 18.8% Workers’ Comp Rate Hike Proposal
Aug 31 2012 // Massachusetts Division of Insurance announced Thursday that it has rejected a request to raise the state’s workers’ compensation rates by 18.8 percent. Massachusetts regulators’ decision to strike down...
Petersen International Releases Disability Plan for Loss of Future Earnings
Aug 31 2012 // Petersen International Underwriters has released a new disability insurance product intended to pay benefits based on an insured person’s potential future income. The plan, titled “Loss of Future Earnings...
Willis Research Sees Fewer, but Stronger, Hurricanes in Future Years
Aug 31 2012 // New research from the Willis Research Network (WRN) addresses scientific forecasts that “global warming is likely to lead to stronger tropical cyclones, but also that the overall global frequency of tropical storms...
Study: 580 Concussions in North Dakota Prep Sports Last Year
Aug 29 2012 // A study conducted by the North Dakota High School Activities Association found that there were at least 580 sports-related concussions during the 2011-12 academic year. State lawmakers recommended the study. The Forum...
Arkansas in Forecast Zone for Tropical Storm Isaac
Aug 28 2012 // Arkansas is expected to see wind and rain from Tropical Storm Isaac, which is expected to make landfall on the Gulf Coast on Aug. 29. Meteorologist Matthew Clay at the National Weather Service Office in North Little Rock...
Employers Committed to Offering Health Plans; Cost Seen Going Up 5.3% in 2013
Aug 28 2012 // Following the U.S. Supreme Court decision on health care reform, most employers (88 percent) have affirmed their commitment to offer health care benefits to their active employees for the foreseeable future, according to a...
Study: Workers’ Comp Reform Bill Increases Costs $300M
Aug 27 2012 // A workers’ compensation reform bill was officially introduced on Monday, and the same day the California Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau issued a study saying the bill could produce a savings of...
Swiss Re Reports Italian Insurance Market at ‘Crossroads’ of Change
Aug 27 2012 // According to Swiss Re’s latest study – The Italian insurance market: opportunities in the land of the Renaissance – “Italy stands at the crossroads of economic and social change, and therefore offers...
Insurers Seek 6.1% Increase in Florida Workers’ Compensation Rates
Aug 24 2012 // Florida employers may see their workers’ compensation rates increase as the National Council on Compensation Insurance announced it is seeking a statewide average 6.1 percent rate hike on behalf of insurers. If...
Best Assigns ‘B+’ Ratings to UAE’s Al-Sagr; Outlook Stable
Aug 24 2012 // A.M. Best Europe – Rating Services Limited has assigned a financial strength rating of ‘B+’ (Good) and issuer credit rating of “bbb-” to United Arab Emirates-based Al-Sagr National Insurance Co.;...
Reforms May Save Florida Drivers Up to 24.6% on PIP Premium: Report
Aug 24 2012 // Florida’s new no-fault auto insurance law could result in savings of 14 percent up to as much as 24.6 percent for drivers’ on their personal injury protection premiums, although it remains to be seen whether...
Louisiana Private Sector Jobs Grow 39,500 Over the Year
Aug 21 2012 // Louisiana’s private sector employment grew 2.6 percent from July 2011 to July 2012, adding 39,500 jobs. July was the 23rd straight month with over-the-year private sector job growth in Louisiana. Louisiana’s...
Ore. Workers’ Compensation Claims Down In Decade
Aug 21 2012 // Despite a 30 percent increase in Oregon’s workforce, the state’s workers’ compensation claims are down sharply since the system was overhauled two decades ago. Workers’ Compensation Division...
West Virginia Workers’ Comp Rates Going Down 9%
Aug 20 2012 // West Virginia employers’ rates for workers’ compensation are heading down again after regulators approved a statewide average 9.1 percent decrease in loss cost rates. Insurance Commissioner Michael D. Riley...
As Dec. 21 Nears, Demand for Zombie Protection Rises
Aug 20 2012 // Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared in Insurance Journal’s Satire Issue, August 20, 2012. The content in this issue is not real and is not to be taken seriously. It’s supposed to be humorous....
