Latest Trends Headlines
All the headlines from our Trends Topic Page, ordered by recency.
U.S. Group Health Premiums Rose 3% in 2009; Individual Up 15%
Sep 17 2010 // U.S. health insurers took in 7 percent more revenue from premiums from individual, group and other policies in 2009 than in the previous year, even as the number of those people with coverage fell, according to a report...
Best Affirms White Mountains, Subsidiaries Ratings; Outlook Stable
Sep 17 2010 // A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength rating (FSR) of ‘A’ (Excellent) and the issuer credit ratings (ICR) of “a” of the U.S. operating companies comprising OneBeacon Insurance Group, and...
S&P Revises Selective’s Outlook to Stable; Affirms Ratings
Sep 15 2010 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services has revised its outlook on Selective Insurance Group Inc. (SIGI) and its operating subsidiaries (collectively, Selective) to stable from negative. S&P also affirmed its...
Best Lowers Macau Insurance Ratings; Outlook Revised to Stable
Sep 15 2010 // A.M. Best Co. has downgraded the financial strength rating (FSR) to ‘A-‘ (Excellent) from ‘A’ (Excellent) and the issuer credit rating (ICR) to “a-” from “a” of Macau...
Departure of Insurer from Florida Points Up Fraud Problem
Sep 9 2010 // With a letter sent out a few weeks ago, Explorer Insurance announced that it will no longer write private automobile policies in Florida because there is too much fraud. “The company is taking this action in light of...
North Carolina Rate Bureau Requests Workers’ Comp Increase
Sep 9 2010 // North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin has received the 2010 workers compensation rate filings from the North Carolina Rate Bureau, the organization that represents the state’s workers compensation...
Fitch Revises U.S. P/C Industry Outlook to Stable
Sep 8 2010 // Fitch has revised its sector outlook on the U.S. property/casualty insurance industry to stable from negative for both the commercial lines and personal lines sectors. The ratings agency says that a stable outlook for the...
Florida Plans Hearing on Citizens’ Rate Increases
Sep 7 2010 // Florida’s Office of Insurance Regulation will hold a hearing on proposed rate increases for several lines of insurance from Citizens Property Insurance Corp. at 1 p.m. on Sept. 7, 2010, in Tallahassee. The lines of...
Calif. Workers’ Comp Insurance Rating Bureau Wants 30% Rate Increase
Sep 6 2010 // As expected, the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of California has submitted a pure premium rate filing to the California Insurance Commissioner recommending a 29.6 percent increase in pure premium...
AZ Court Decision Could Increase Agent E&O Premiums
Sep 6 2010 // The Arizona Supreme Court is weighing in on the state’s uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage selection form – a decision that could dramatically increase insurance agency’s errors and omissions...
Top 25 Workers’ Compensation Insurers Show 34% Increase in Premium Growth
Sep 6 2010 // Results Based on Premium Growth June 30, 2010, Versus June 30, 2009 Approximately one year ago, I discussed the premium growth reported by insurers with the top 25 gains in workers’ compensation insurance premium...
Dog Bite Claims Top $400 Million in 2009; Rise 30% in Last 6 Years
Sep 6 2010 // Dog bite claims cost the insurance industry $412 million in 2009, an increase of 6.4 percent from 2008. Dog bites account for more than one-third of all homeowners insurance liability claims paid out in 2009, says the...
P/C Industry Shows Slight Premium Growth in Q2, But No Gain in Profits
Sep 6 2010 // The U.S. property/casualty industry experienced modest growth in premiums written but overall the industry saw deterioration in underwriting profitability in second-quarter 2010, fueled by trends among personal lines...
Fee Schedule Slowed Growth of Illinois Injured Workers’ Medical Costs
Sep 3 2010 // Medical costs per workers’ compensation claim in Illinois showed slower growth in 2007 following implementation of the medical fee schedule in 2006, according to a study from the Workers Compensation Research...
Pennsylvania Ponders Increased Auto Liability Limits
Sep 3 2010 // A new bill introduced to the Pennsylvania senate would double the minimum liability amounts of auto insurance policies in the state. Current laws set minimum liability limits for bodily injury at $15,000 per person, and...
Florida Workers’ Comp Reform Slowed Cost Growth
Sep 3 2010 // Reform of Florida’s workers’ compensation fee schedule in 2003 achieved its intended results, significantly increasing the prices paid for physician services and reducing the average payment per service for...
U.S. P/C Reinsurers’ Premiums Decrease $12.8B in First Half of 2010
Sep 1 2010 // A group of 19 U.S.-based property/casualty reinsurers wrote $12.3 billion of net premiums during the six-months ended June 30, 2010, a decrease from the $12.8 billion net premiums written in the first six months of...
A Stronger Property Insurance Market in Louisiana Post-Katrina
Sep 1 2010 // Despite the devastation from Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon says the state’s insurance market is stronger now and that the “outlook for continued market recovery is...
Study: Compound Drugs, Co-Packs Increase Calif. Workers’ Comp Costs
Aug 31 2010 // The use of compound drugs, medical foods, and so-called convenience packs that combine prescription drugs and medical foods, increased dramatically in the second quarter of 2007 — driving up costs in the...
S&P Affirms Markel’s ‘BBB’ Ratings; Outlook Negative
Aug 26 2010 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services has affirmed its ‘BBB’ unsolicited counterparty credit rating on Markel Corp. However, S&P said the “outlook on Markel remains negative.” Credit...
