Latest Trends Headlines
All the headlines from our Trends Topic Page, ordered by recency.
WCIRB Proposes 10.4 Percent Decrease in Pure Premium Rates
Mar 28 2005 // On March 25, 2005, the WCIRB submitted a filing to the California Insurance Commissioner recommending a 10.4 percent decrease in advisory pure premium rates effective July 1, 2005 on new and renewal policies. The proposed...
Mich. Catastrophic Claims Assessment Up 11%
Mar 25 2005 // The Michigan Claims Catastrophic Association increased its annual assessment to insurers by 11 percent to $141.70 per insured vehicle from $127.24, drawing sharp criticism from the state’s insurance regulator. In a...
S&P Takes MMC off CreditWatch; Affirms ‘BBB’ Rating, Negative Outlook
Mar 25 2005 // Standard & Poor’s Rating Services announced that it has affirmed its “BBB” counterparty credit and senior unsecured debt ratings and ‘A-2’ commercial paper ratings on Marsh &...
Survey: Consumer Driven Health Plans Making Headway in U.S. Companies
Mar 24 2005 // According to a recent survey of 208 benefits managers, 22 percent of companies responding now offer a consumer driven health plan option (CDHP) to employees. Seventy-four percent of the companies offering CDHPs started...
Minn.’s Comp Claim Rate Down, Cost Up
Mar 24 2005 // The number of paid workers’ compensation claims fell 22 percent relative to the number of employees from 2000 to 2003, according to a newly released report from the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry....
Killer Tsunamis and the Marine Insurance Market
Mar 21 2005 // Early in the morning hours on Dec. 26, 2004, opposing subterranean tectonic plates deep beneath the Indian Ocean floor shifted in violent unison along a line about 300 miles long. The energy released was on par with a...
FUTURE COMMISSIONER MAY BE APPOINTED
Mar 21 2005 // Oklahoma’s insurance commissioner would be appointed by the governor instead of elected by the people under legislation that was sent to the Oklahoma House by a legislative committee, the Associated Press...
Calif. Small Business Owners Optimistic About Growth, UBOC Survey Says
Mar 21 2005 // Almost 71 percent of California small business owners polled are expecting 2005 to be an overall better year than 2004, according to the fifth annual statewide survey released by Union Bank of California, N.A. The...
N.C. Commission, Rate Bureau Reach Compromise; Agree on 2.2 Percent Average Policy Increase
Mar 18 2005 // A compromise agreement approving a 2.2 percent average statewide homeowners premium increase has been reached between the North Carolina Insurance Commission and the North Carolina Rate Bureau. The Bureau, an independent...
Allianz 2004 Profits up 16.4% to $2.93 Billion
Mar 18 2005 // Germany’s Allianz reported net 2004 profits of 2.2 billion euros ($2.93 billion), despite last year’s spate of natural catastrophes and continued problems at its Dresdner Bank subsidiary. The group’s net...
S&P Lowers Outlook on Alea to Negative
Mar 17 2005 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services announced that it has revised its outlook on the Alea Group to negative from stable. The revision includes the following companies: Alea Europe Ltd., Alea (Bermuda) Ltd., Alea...
Got Mold? Survey Says Consumer Concern Increases Regarding Mold in the Home
Mar 16 2005 // First there was radon, then carbon monoxide and volatile organic compounds. Now the latest home invader is mold and, in a national survey released by CertainTeed Corporation and conducted for them by Opinion Research...
Pa. Sees Slower Growth in Workers’ Compensation Claim Costs, According to WCRI Study
Mar 15 2005 // Costs per workers’ compensation claim in Pennsylvania rose 6 percent between 2001 and 2002, according to a new report by the Cambridge, Mass.-based Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI). This contrasts with...
Eureko Posts Record 2004 Profits; CEO to Step Down
Mar 15 2005 // The Netherlands-based Eureko group announced record profits for 2004. Consolidated net income, which includes capital gains, rose to 1.153 billion euros ($1.54 billion), while net income excluding capital gains doubled to...
Fitch Ratings Affirms CNA’s “BBB-” Rating, Bumps Outlook to Stable
Mar 14 2005 // Fitch Ratings has affirmed the “BBB-” long-term issuer and senior debt ratings of Chicago-based commercial insurer CNA Financial Corp., as well as the “BBB-” insurer financial strength ratings of...
Texas Study Says Malpractice Verdicts Not to Blame for Rising Insurance Premiums
Mar 11 2005 // Large medical malpractice verdicts and settlements were not to blame for a rapid increase in insurance premiums for Texas doctors and hospitals, according to a study by law professors at the University of Texas at Austin...
Progressive Drives Into S.C. Commercial Auto Insurance Market; Signs 430 Agents
Mar 7 2005 // Progressive Insurance’s Drive Group (Drive Insurance) has announced it will offer its commercial auto product in South Carolina through more than 430 agents. Drive(SM) Insurance is The Progressive Group of Insurance...
Warren Buffett Praises N.J. Auto Insurance Market Turnaround and Outgoing Chief Bakke
Mar 7 2005 // Star mogul Warren E. Buffett loves New Jersey, at least its auto insurance market. In his annual letter to shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. of which he is chairman, Buffett has high praise for the turnaround in the...
Killer Tsunamis and the Marine Insurance Market
Mar 7 2005 // Early in the morning on Dec. 26, 2004, opposing subterranean tectonic plates deep beneath the Indian Ocean floor shifted in violent unison along a line about 300 miles long. The energy released was on par with a 50-kiloton...
Contingency Commissions and the Future of California Agents & Brokers
Mar 7 2005 // How the Spitzer-led investigation against broker fees inspired solutions to California’s “problems” Over the past several months, there have been numerous explanations, press releases and position papers...
