Latest Trends Headlines
All the headlines from our Trends Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Wash. L&I Adopts 3.7% Workers’ Comp Rate Increase
Nov 23 2004 // The Washington Department of Labor and Industries finalized an average 3.7 percent rate increase for workers’ compensation insurance in 2005. The increase takes effect Jan. 1 and will raise an additional $52 million...
Industry Consolidation Continues to Gain Momentum, 2005 Looks Cloudy
Nov 22 2004 // 2004 Could Break Records for Announced Transactions Agency consolidations are likely to achieve record results for 2004 but the outlook for 2005 remains unclear. Agency acquisitions in 2004 will more than likely outpace...
Texas Judge Strikes Down Rate Rollbacks for State Farm, Farmers
Nov 22 2004 // TDI, Lt. Governor vow to continue efforts on behalf of homeowners. A state district judge in Texas on Nov. 8, 2004, overturned mandated rate rollbacks in homeowners insurance for State Farm and Farmers insurance companies,...
Turning 35: The National Alliance Looks Back … and Into the Future
Nov 22 2004 // Insurance education society has served more than 130,000 participants. 1969. It was the dawning of the age of Aquarius, it was one giant leap for mankind, it was the Summer of Love, it was Inna-Gadda-Da-Vida, baby. And, it...
S&P Raises White Mountains Group Outlook to Positive
Nov 22 2004 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services announced that it has revised its outlook on White Mountains Insurance Group Ltd. (WTM), Fund American Cos. Inc., Folksamerica Reinsurance Co. and Sirius International...
Ohio Comp Medical Costs Down 6.7%, Says Bureau
Nov 22 2004 // The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) announced recently paid medical costs for workers’ compensation claims were 6.7 percent, about $15 million, lower than expected for the first quarter of fiscal...
Focus on the Future: Come 2014, Industry Should Look Very Familiar
Nov 22 2004 // PCI Execs Contend Current Players Will Adapt to Maintain Advantages Ten years from now, some of the players within the property/casualty insurance industry will have changed but the industry itself will not look...
AHIP Survey Sees Worker Challenges in Disabilities
Nov 18 2004 // America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) released results from a nationwide survey of full-time employees conducted in August 2004 by Ayres, McHenry and Associates. The survey finds public understanding at odds with...
W. Va. Comp Audit Reports Positive Trends
Nov 17 2004 // An independent audit report for fiscal 2004 shows continued positive financial trends for the West Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission, according to Executive Director Gregory Burton. The report cites a deficit...
Farmers Survey Says Some Drivers Have the Rage
Nov 15 2004 // More than 10 percent of drivers admit they have intentionally cut off other drivers or have wanted to force them off the road during the past year, according to a recent survey by Farmers Insurance Group. Of the 1,001...
Hannover Re Hit by Q3 Cat Losses; 9-month Operating Profit Down 18.1 % to $527 Million
Nov 12 2004 // Germany’s Hannover Re – ranked by Standard & Poor’s as the world’s fifth largest reinsurer – announced third quarter earnings that were heavily impacted by the Florida hurricanes and...
S&P Rates PartnerRe Preferred Stock Issue ‘BBB+’; Affirms Rating, Stable Outlook
Nov 11 2004 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services announced that it has assigned its “BBB+” preferred stock rating to Bermuda-based PartnerRe Ltd.’s (PRE’s) proposed $200 million Series D Cumulative...
S&P Raises SCOR Outlook; Affirms ‘BBB+’ Rating
Nov 10 2004 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services announced that it has revised its outlook on French reinsurer SCOR and its guaranteed subsidiaries to positive from stable. At the same time, S&P affirmed its...
Benfield Report Looks at 2004 Hurricane/Typhoon Season and Destruction Left Behind
Nov 10 2004 // Between Atlantic hurricanes and Pacific typhoons, the 2004 storm season has already generated record catastrophe (CAT) losses which will reportedly encourage many insurers to rethink their CAT reinsurance coverage. The...
Minnesota, Louisiana at Different Ends of Health Spectrum Following Survey
Nov 10 2004 // Despite having to deal with some of the nation’s worst wintertime weather, Minnesota emerged as the nation’s healthiest state, while far to the south, Louisiana is the least healthy, a ranking it has been...
Mo. Malpractice Claims Fall But Premiums Rise
Nov 9 2004 // The number of medical malpractice claims filed and paid is declining in Missouri, yet physicians’ premiums are rising, according to a report from the state Insurance Department. New medical malpractice claims dropped...
The Feds are Endangering Future of Crop Insurance
Nov 8 2004 // Ten years ago, the Federal Multi-Peril Crop Insurance Program covered fewer than 100 million acres of U.S. farmland. That number has more than doubled since 1994, and today it is close to 220 million acres. This is...
S&P Revises Overall Property/Casualty Outlook to Negative
Nov 8 2004 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services has revised its outlook on the U.S. property/casualty commercial lines sector to negative from stable. “The outlook revision follows allegations of widespread misconduct...
WASH. BUSINESS COSTS RISING:
Nov 8 2004 // The WashACE annual report that lists key indicators of the state’s business climate in relation to other states reportedly shows that, despite signs of the slowly recovering state economy, Washington has fallen in...
R&M Adds Marine, Aviation and Transport 2003 Study
Nov 5 2004 // Dublin-based Research and announced the addition of Marine, Aviation and Transport Insurance 2003 to their offering. The report “gives an indispensable overview of the global market in these sectors, containing...
