Latest Trends Headlines
All the headlines from our Trends Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Summer 2024 Was World’s Hottest on Record: EU Climate Change Monitor
Sep 9 2024 // The world is emerging from its warmest northern hemisphere summer since records began, the European Union’s climate change monitoring service said on Friday, as global warming continues to intensify. The boreal...
Fitch Ratings Shifts Global Re Outlook to Neutral; Pricing Past Peak
Sep 6 2024 // Fitch Ratings announced that it shifted its outlook on the global reinsurance sector to neutral yesterday but the downward shift came with an expectation of continued profitability—and a forecasted combined ratio around...
Germany Cracks Down on China Green Fraud in Deepening Scandal
Sep 6 2024 // German authorities have rejected €18 million ($20 million) worth of carbon credits after finding “irregularities” in China-based projects that were meant to lower emissions. The initiatives, which were run by...
New Hampshire Approves 5.6% Workers’ Compensation Loss Cost Decrease for 2025
Sep 6 2024 // The New Hampshire Insurance Department (NHID) reports that it has approved a workers’ compensation rate proposal that will reduce voluntary loss costs by 5.6% on average. The new lower rates will apply to voluntary...
NCCI Calls For Tiny Workers’ Comp Rate Decrease for Florida After New Doctor Fees
Sep 4 2024 // Annual workers’ compensation rate cuts in the double digits have become routine in almost every U.S. state in recent years. That trend may have now come to an end in Florida, where the National Council on...
Canada’s Insurance Sector Faces Deluge of Climate-Related Catastrophe Claims
Sep 3 2024 // Hotter summers in Canada that have sparked wildfires in tourist areas, intense hailstorms and thunderstorms with severe flooding in major cities, all likely linked to climate change, are leading to personnel shortages and...
Hurricane Debby Claims Already Two-Thirds of Idalia Claims in Florida, as Insurance Market Strengthens, Regulator Says
Sep 2 2024 // The number of Florida claims from Hurricane Debby, filed within 10 days of the storm, stood at almost two-thirds of the number of claims filed from Hurricane Idalia in a three-month period. Debby claims by Aug. 16 had...
Network Growth in Hard Market
Sep 2 2024 // For more than a decade, Insurance Journal has recognized some of the nation’s largest agency partnerships and networks in its annual Top 20 ranking. In 2014, Insurance Journal’s Top 20 Agency Partnerships...
Sica Fletcher Index: Agency-Broker M&A Down Slightly in First Half 2024
Sep 2 2024 // The 22 acquirers that make up the Sica Fletcher Index were involved in 242 agent-broker deals in the first six months of 2024, totaling $635 million in revenue. That is a 45% drop in revenue from what was acquired during...
TDI to Hold Two Public Meetings on TWIA’s Filing of 10% Rate Increase
Aug 30 2024 // The Texas Department of Insurance will hold two public meetings in September on the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association’s annual rate filing increase of 10% for residential and commercial properties. TDI will host...
Lithium Startups Bet on High Demand in Battery-Powered Future
Aug 30 2024 // As the world leans into electrification, it will need more lithium. A key ingredient in the batteries that power everything from electric vehicles to cell phones, demand is projected to accelerate over the next decade. To...
AM Best Revises Outlook to Negative for Ohio’s Buckeye State Mutual
Aug 28 2024 // AM Best has revised the outlooks to negative from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B+ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “bbb-” (Good) of Buckeye State Mutual Insurance Company...
UK Tones Down Worker ‘Right to Switch Off’ Demands on Firms
Aug 28 2024 // Britain’s Labour government is watering down ambitions to give employees a legal right to ignore work demands outside office hours, favoring softer rules that had limited impact for workers in Ireland. Rather than...
Australian Homeowners Struggling to Afford Insurance as Climate Risks Grow: Report
Aug 26 2024 // Home insurance is becoming unaffordable for a growing number of Australian households as increased climate threats drive up their premiums, potentially putting billions of dollars in mortgage loans at risk, a report said...
Ping An Profit Rises Nearly 7% as Market Recovery Bolsters Returns
Aug 23 2024 // Ping An Insurance (Group) Co. said profit rose nearly 7% in the first half, after a stock-market recovery helped bolster investment returns at China’s second-largest insurer by market value. Net income climbed to...
WV Volunteer Fire Official Pleads to Insurance Fraud After Burning Down His Home
Aug 23 2024 // A former West Virginia volunteer fire official is awaiting sentencing after he admitted to setting fire to his home, filing an insurance claim, and using the fire department’s credit card for personal gain. Donald A....
AM Best Revises Outlook for Missouri Farm Bureau Group
Aug 22 2024 // AM Best has revised the outlooks to negative from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term ICRs) of “a-” (Excellent) of Farm...
Australian Insurer IAG Says Rise in Claims, Third-Party Costs to Push Up Premiums
Aug 21 2024 // Insurance Australia Group said on Wednesday it expects premiums to keep rising because of a huge jump in loss claims and third-party costs for home and automobile repairs, sending its shares more than 3% lower. IAG said...
Agents Say Outlook Positive: Survey
Aug 19 2024 // Despite challenges posed by inflation, market volatility and rapidly changing technologies, independent agents remain positive about their businesses and report more optimistic perceptions of national business conditions...
Public D&O Price Decreased 5.2% in Second Quarter, Says Aon
Aug 19 2024 // The average price for directors & officers liability insurance decreased 5.2% per $1 million in limits in the second quarter, according to Aon Commercial Risk Solutions. Aon said the decrease compared to the same...
