Research and Trends News

Despite Less Driving During 2020 Pandemic, Traffic Deaths Were Highest In 13 Years

Even though Americans drove less in 2020 due to the pandemic, early estimates of crash fatalities from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released Thursday reveal the largest projected number of deaths since 2007. According to …

Hiscox Completes Legacy Reinsurance Deal with Enstar Group

Bermuda-based specialist insurer Hiscox Ltd. has completed a loss portfolio transfer (LPT) agreement with Enstar Group Ltd., whereby Enstar’s Syndicate 2008 will assume historical liabilities for selected lines of Hiscox Syndicate 3624, including the majority of Hiscox USA’s surplus lines …

COVID Takes Big Bite from Multiline Insurers’ Earnings, in ‘Manageable’ Event: S&P

The COVID-19 crisis cost 16 global multiline insurers about $8 billion in 2020, although they still reported substantial net profit of $36 billion, according to a report published by S&P Global Ratings. This net profit figure was down from $56 …

Cyber Insurers Hike Rates But Worry About Pricing Long-Term As Losses Mount: Fitch

U.S. insurers offering cyber coverage have been implementing significant pricing and underwriting actions in 2021 in response to a spike in cyber claims, according to Fitch Ratings. Fitch predicts that immediate improvement is unlikely this year from these actions and …

Rising Global Temperatures Move Closer to Climate Change Tipping Point: U.N. Report

There is now a 40% chance that global temperatures will temporarily reach 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels in the next five years — and these odds are rising, a U.N. report said on Wednesday. a U.N. report said on …

Wolves Get Credit for 24% Drop in Deer-Auto Collisions

Ecologist Rolf Peterson remembers driving remote stretches of road in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and seeing areas strewn with deer carcasses. But that changed after gray wolves arrived in the region from Canada and Minnesota. “When wolves moved in during the …

Western U.S. Wildfires Have Made Insurance for Contractors a Tough Buy

Things look bad with California’s ever-sooner wildfire season seemingly approaching and what’s shaping up to be a severe drought across the Western U.S. The plague of wildfires in the past few years in California have made things tough for residents …

The Highs, Low of Agency Q1 Profitability and the Post-Pandemic Path Forward: Reagan

Insurance agencies reported a couple of highs and a low in first quarter profitability results, according to the latest Reagan Consulting Growth & Profitability Survey of the agency consulting firm’s agents and broker clients. Three industry measures were the best …

Canada Faces Mega-Hurricanes if Climate Change Pushes Storms North: Swiss Re Warns

Climate change is making hurricanes bigger and stronger, and it may soon push them farther north. Yet Canada’s homeowners, businesses and insurers underestimate that escalating risk, according to one of the world’s leading reinsurance firms. Overall, the northern nation has …

Businesses Should Expect More Product Recalls, Regulations After Covid: Sedgwick

While the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have kept inspections and product recall incidents at low levels, businesses should expect a an upsurge in recalls as the world begins to re-open. They should also prepare for the prospect of new …