Latest Trends Headlines
All the headlines from our Trends Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Agency M&A Down 24% in First Half 2023: OPTIS
Jul 26 2023 // Investment banking and financial firm OPTIS Partners said the count of agency mergers and acquisitions during the first half of the year was 359, down 24% from 475 during the same time last year. “The drop-off in...
Report: California Workers’ Comp Premium Levels on the Rise
Jul 25 2023 // California workers’ compensation premium levels rose by 14% in 2022 due to the economic recovery from the pandemic-related downturn, according to the new Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of...
After Decades of Delays, Coal Miners Hail Rule to Slow Black Lung Disease
Jul 25 2023 // A half-century ago, the nation`s top health experts urged the federal agency in charge of mine safety to adopt strict rules protecting miners from poisonous rock dust. The inaction since – fueled by denials and lobbying...
Law Firm Must Name Clients Affected by 2020 Cyberattack, Judge Says
Jul 25 2023 // Covington & Burling must identify some clients caught up in a 2020 hack on the law firm to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, a federal judge in Washington ruled on Monday in a case that could impact future...
Wildfires Rage Across Greece With Record Heat Forecast for Italy
Jul 24 2023 // Wildfires are raging across Greece after about 19,000 people were evacuated from the island of Rhodes over the weekend, while record temperatures are forecast for Sardinia. Over the past 24 hours, 162 fires have been...
Arkansas Schools Face 130% Increase in Property Premiums, Seek Financial Assistance
Jul 24 2023 // An Arkansas subcommittee last week approved Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ request for close to $11 million from the state’s restricted reserve fund to offset costs for school districts facing soaring property...
Auto Claims Inflation Speeds Ahead of Premium Increases
Jul 24 2023 // Insurance claims inflation has risen faster than the underlying consumer price index (CPI), outpacing auto insurance premium increases, according to a new study, Auto Insurance: The Uncertain Road Ahead, by the American...
Coastal Construction, Rising Replacement Values Contribute to Costly Hurricane Claims
Jul 21 2023 // Insured losses from hurricanes have risen steadily over just the past 15 years, with nine of the 10 costliest hurricanes in U.S. history occurring since 2005, according to the Insurance Information Institute...
Crypto Ransomware Attacks Rise in First Half of 2023: Chainalysis
Jul 18 2023 // Crypto crime fell overall in the first six months of 2023, but the volume of payments to ransomware attackers surged and is on track for its second-biggest annual total on record, blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis said...
US Insurance Market Forecast to Withstand Losses From Large Hurricane This Year: Fitch Report
Jul 17 2023 // With ample capital, Fitch Ratings’ latest annual ‘U.S. Hurricane Season’ report indicates U.S. property and casualty (P/C) and reinsurers can absorb losses if a large hurricane makes landfall this...
Climate Change Leads to ‘Arctic Opening,’ Creating Key Emerging Risk: Swiss Re
Jul 17 2023 // Climate change is the cause of a key emerging risk identified by Swiss Re’s SONAR report, which is leading to the opening of previously frozen waterways in the Arctic and the creation of new shipping and trade...
E&O Claim Frequency Is Increasing
Jul 17 2023 // Through my recent discussions with clients and carriers, it is clear to me that agencies are incurring substantially more errors and omissions (E&O) claims. A significant difference exists between the number of claims...
Will S&P Change ‘Negative’ Reinsurance Outlook to ‘Stable’ in 2023?
Jul 14 2023 // While no one directly asked the question of this article’s headline at the S&P Global Ratings June annual insurance conference, the prospect that an outlook change is near came into view during the industry...
Severe Weather Causes First-Half 2023 Losses of at Least $1B in Seven States: Report
Jul 13 2023 // Seven states experienced at least $1 billion in total insured severe weather loss for the first half of 2023, according to an update from BMS Group. Texas led all states with insured severe weather loss of $7.2 billion...
TWIA Committee Recommends 5% Increase in 2024 Residential Rates, 8% for Commercial
Jul 12 2023 // The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association Actuarial & Underwriting Committee met Tuesday, July 11 and voted to recommend increasing rates for residential policies by 5% and commercial policies by 8% for 2024. The TWIA...
Lack of Heat Safety Standards Puts Texas Workers at Risk, as Heat-Related Deaths Continue to Rise
Jul 12 2023 // Maynor Estuardo Álvarez used to stand the Texas heat, but not anymore. Something changed in his body last summer while working as a painter in an apartment in Houston. It was the afternoon, the temperature had surpassed...
Property Insurers’ Ratings Under Pressure as Risk Rises, Morningstar Says
Jul 12 2023 // The credit ratings of global property insurers are coming under pressure as rising reinsurance costs force them to cut back on cover and retain more risks themselves, DBRS Morningstar analysts said in a research note on...
Report: Top Emerging Liability Trends in the Professional Services Sector
Jul 12 2023 // Inflation, new technology, evolving legislation and hackers for hire are just a few of the exposures facing professional services firms including management consultants, auditors, accountants, architects, engineers,...
Study: 96% of Injured Texas Workers Return to Work Within Three Years
Jul 11 2023 // More than 9 in 10 injured Texas employees returned to work within one year post-injury and 96% returned to work three years post-injury, according to an analysis of return-to-work (RTW) outcomes for the Texas...
Insurance Claims From French Riots Rise to $716 Million
Jul 11 2023 // Some 11,300 claims for damages from riots in France had been filed as of July 7 for a total cost of €650 million ($716 million), the insurers federation said in a statement Tuesday. The number of claims has doubled...
