Latest Trends Headlines
All the headlines from our Trends Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Aspen Insurance Holdings Ltd. Unveils Q4, 2004 Report
Mar 4 2005 // Bermuda-based Aspen Insurance Holdings Ltd. reported a net income of $72.2 million, or $1.01 per diluted share, for the three months ended Dec. 31, 2004 and net income of $195.1 million, or $2.74 per diluted share, for the...
Feds Urge Improved Fire Safety at Nation’s Nightclubs in Report on 2003 Deadly Fire in R.I.
Mar 3 2005 // The Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology has called on the organizations that develop building and fire safety codes, standards and practices—and the state and local agencies that...
Target Markets Plans Program Benchmark Survey
Mar 2 2005 // The Target Markets Program Administrators Association announced the distribution of its 2005 program benchmarking survey to all of its members. “One of the most important aspects of our association’s mission is...
Homeowners Insurance Costs Up by 2.5% in 2005; Smallest Increase in 6 years
Mar 1 2005 // Good news for homeowners this year came from the Insurance Information Institute, which projected that the cost of insuring homes will rise by only 2.5 percent in 2005, the smallest increase in six years. The projected...
Insurer Trade Group Reports Growth in 2004
Feb 28 2005 // The National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies reported that the trade association of insurance companies showed an increase of $26 billion in premium and two percentage points over the previous year’s...
QBE 2004 Operating Profit up 43% to $645 Million
Feb 25 2005 // Australia’s QBE Insurance Group announced a record operating profit after tax of A$820 million (U.S. $645 million) for the year ended Dec. 31, 2004, up 43 percent on the profit of A$572 million (U.S.$450 million)...
The Doctors Co. Reports Rate Decrease for Texas
Feb 25 2005 // The Doctors Company, a physician-owned medical malpractice carrier, will file with the Texas Department of Insurance to decrease its average rate level. Ninety percent of the company’s current Texas insureds will...
S&P Revises Outlook on Montpelier Re to Positive
Feb 24 2005 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services announced that it has revised its outlook on Montpelier Reinsurance Ltd. and Montpelier Re Holdings Ltd. (MRH) to positive from stable. “The outlook was revised to...
AIA: Increasing Idaho’s Speed Limit for Large Trucks will be Disastrous
Feb 24 2005 // Raising the speed limit for large trucks and other vehicles on Idaho’s state highways is a recipe for disaster, according to the American Insurance Association. S. 1133, sponsored by the Idaho Department of...
Calif. Small Business Owners Optimistic About Growth, UBOC Survey Says
Feb 23 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 today by Union Bank of California, N.A. The...
Hub Revenue Jumps, But Earnings Decline in 4Q, 2004
Feb 23 2005 // Chicago-based Hub International Limited posted a 64 percent decline in net earnings to $3.9 million from $10.7 million a year earlier, despite a 33 percent increase in revenue to $104.4 million from $78.7 million and a 1...
R.I. State Senate Bills Seek to Spur Competition in Health Insurance Market
Feb 22 2005 // Saying that a competitive insurance market is critical to making health insurance more affordable for Rhode Island consumers and businesses, Sen. Marc A. Cote has introduced a package of legislation aimed at attracting...
More than 600 Catholic Clerics Accused of Sex Abuse of Minors, Incidents Date Back Decades
Feb 21 2005 // More than 600 U.S. Catholic diocesan priests and deacons were accused in 2004 of sexual abuse of minors, with the majority of allegations of abuse occurring between 1970 and 1974. Half of these clergy had been subject of...
Commercial Insurance Posts Full Year in Soft Market, RIMS Survey Reveals
Feb 21 2005 // The commercial insurance industry experienced a full year of a soft market conditions in 2004, as the last months of the year represented the fourth consecutive quarter of declining prices, according to the RIMS Benchmark...
RATE BUREAU REQUESTS 11.5 PERCENT INCREASE IN AUTO RATES
Feb 21 2005 // The North Carolina Department of Insurance doubts new methodology used by the North Carolina Rate Bureau, which has just requested an 11.5 percent statewide increase in private auto insurance rates. NCRB is an independent...
D&O RATES TO DECREASE EVEN MORE:
Feb 21 2005 // The start of 2004 was a testing time for the global D&O market, reports Willis’ Directors & Officers Index which asked participating insurers for their views about the past three and next three months....
AIA SAYS INCREASING IDAHO’S SPEED LIMIT IS DANGEROUS:
Feb 21 2005 // Increasing Idaho’s speed limit from 65 mph to 75 mph is dangerous public policy, according to the American Insurance Association. A bill (SB 1082) introduced by the Senate earlier in February will reportedly exact a...
ProBuilders Enters N.E. Contractors’ Insurance Market
Feb 17 2005 // ProBuilders Specialty, a risk retention group managed by NationsBuilders Insurance Services, has entered a number of the New England states to offer contractors’ general liability coverage. The program will be...
HCC Sees Increased Earnings for Q4, Full Year 2004
Feb 17 2005 // Houston-based HCC Insurance Holdings Inc. released results for the fourth quarter and full year ended Dec. 31, 2004, reporting increased earnings for both the quarter and the year. Net earnings for the fourth quarter 2004...
Munich Re Confirms Profit Forecast with $2.34 Billion 2004 Net Earnings
Feb 16 2005 // Munich Re announced 2004 net earnings of 1.8 billion euros ($2.34 billion), confirming its earlier revised estimates of between $2.22 billion and $2.48 billion (See IJ Web site Jan.23). The move back to profitability...
