Trending News & Highlights |
| Connor Brach, associate director, AM Best, discusses a new Best's Market Segment Report that shows crop insurance underwriting results demonstrated improvement as severe weather impacts moderated.
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| A continuous wave of captive formations has appeared in the United States and abroad since the onset of the latest hard market in 2018. Analysts and industry experts who recently participated in an AM Best briefing don't expect it to reverse any time soon.
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| Ann Modica, director, credit rating, criteria and research, AM Best, breaks down the recent decline of the U.S. dollar, its fiscal drivers, and what the volatility means for insurers with global exposure.
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| American International Group Inc. sees strong property/casualty trends continuing as the group swung to a second-quarter profit, its chief executive officer said.
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| MetLife Inc. has done $2.2 billion worth of pension risk transfer deals so far in 2025 and sees the remainder of the year overcoming a lighter second quarter, said Ramy Tadros, regional president of MetLife's U.S. business.
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| Thomas Holzheu, chief economist Americas at Swiss Re, discusses how U.S. tariffs and inflation are driving up claims costs and slowing premium growth, while creating emerging opportunities in life, cyber and specialty lines.
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| Technological advancements are a balancing act, according to new NJM President and Chief Executive Officer Carol Voorhees.
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| Seeking a swing to growth, Liberty Mutual Holding Co. is lowering personal lines rates, ramping up spending on marketing and loosening underwriting restrictions in targeted lines and states, according to U.S. Retail Markets President Hamid Mirza.
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| Geico second-quarter pretax underwriting earnings rose to $1.82 billion, but there were drops in parent company Berkshire Hathaway Inc.'s primary and reinsurance units.
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| Axa SA announced the acquisition of a majority stake in Italian direct insurer Prima for €500 million ($577 million) as the group seeks to boost its position in the direct insurance market.
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| Claims volatility in the U.S. individual life business and excess health care claims dented second-quarter profit for Reinsurance Group of America Inc.
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| Skyward Specialty Insurance Group Inc. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Andrew Robinson thinks the overall primary general liability excess and surplus market is pretty good, with "occasional just craziness going on."
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| Ryan Specialty Holdings Inc. reported net attributable income rose 11.1% in the second quarter from a year earlier to reach $51.9 million as new acquisitions boosted it despite a challenging quarter in property insurance.
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| Property insurance renewal premiums were down 7% in the second quarter, but the industry is one storm away from the market turning, global broker Arthur J. Gallagher Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Pat Gallagher said during an earnings conference call.
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| CNA Financial Inc. posted lower second-quarter net income on a charge related to prior-year development involving Diocese of Rochester claims as catastrophe losses fell from the previous year.
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| SiriusPoint Ltd.'s second-quarter net income dropped 44.9% to $63.3 million, hurt by a host of higher expenses.
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| Corebridge Financial Inc.'s move to reinsure all of the $51 billion in variable annuities of its individual retirement business will position it to drive organic growth from a lower baseline of risk, President and Chief Executive Officer Kevin Hogan said.
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| Lemonade Inc.'s net loss narrowed 23% in the second quarter to $44 million as premiums increased.
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| PartnerRe Ltd. posted higher first-half net income in good investment results despite a property/casualty underwriting loss due to the California wildfires.
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| Lancashire Holdings Ltd.'s ability to absorb losses from January's devastating California wildfires serves as a reminder of the company's resilience within its business model, its chief executive officer said.
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| Hippo Holdings Inc.'s second-quarter net income of $1.3 million marked the first time the company posted income from operating activities, President and Chief Executive Officer Rick McCathron said during a conference call.
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| Assicurazioni Generali S.p.A. posted improved first-half results on gains in all of its segments as the Italian insurance group examines the proposed €6.3 billion ($7.33 billion) sale of its banking business, its chief executive officer said.
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| Allianz SE is forming partnerships and making small acquisitions worldwide to extend its influence in a number of lines and markets, according to its chief executive officer.
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| Zurich Insurance Group Ltd. is moving its nonlife insurance emphasis to specialty and middle market business while reducing its liability insurance exposure as the group seeks to continue its profitable growth, according to its chief executive officer.
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| Brighthouse Financial Inc. reported net income available to shareholders of $60 million in the second quarter, a rise from the $9 million it posted in the same period a year earlier.
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| As hiring slowed in the wider economy, the ranks of United States insurance professionals expanded by 7,500 positions in July from the month prior, which saw a decline in industry employment, according to preliminary figures from the U.S. Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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| Liberty Mutual agents in California could recommend Mercury Insurance to thousands of policyholders impacted by subsidiary Safeco's exit from renters, condo and select auto business, Mercury said in a statement.
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| Avatar MGA Ltd., a managing general agent targeting mid-market property insurance in the United States, said it has received approvals from Lloyd's as a coverholder and from the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority.
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| Manulife Financial Corp. has agreed to acquire a 75% stake in Comvest Credit Partners for US$937.5 million in a deal it said would expand its private credit platform.
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| Artificial intelligence, challenges in the home insurance market and reserving practices of life insurers will be among the chief topics when commissioners, insurers and other stakeholders from across the country gather at the National Association of Insurance Commissioners summer meeting in Minneapolis.
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| The California Department of Insurance is ordering the FAIR Plan to show cause over what it said is a pattern of denied smoke damage claims based on arbitrary policy language that fails to conform with code.
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| Health insurers are seeking double-digit rate increases for individual and small group markets in Nevada, Missouri, Idaho and Pennsylvania as health care costs rise, utilization grows and federal changes take hold, regulators said.
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| Legislative changes will cause Mississippi windpool insurance rates to increase at the end of this year for coastal property owners, while auto rates in the states are coming down, Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney said.
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| Alan McClain is resigning from his role as Arkansas insurance commissioner, effective at the end of August, and is returning to the private sector, the insurance department confirmed.
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| Generali Group and new joint venture partner Central Bank of India announced the Generali Central brand for their life and general insurance collaboration in the country.
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| Tokio Marine Life Insurance Malaysia Berhad and its takaful partners entered into a 20-year bancassurance and bancatakaful distribution agreement with RHB Banking Group in the country.
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Research |
Driven by California’s record-setting wildfires in January and tornado outbreaks across other regions, the U.S. homeowners’ insurance segment reported its worst first quarter loss ratio in five years, according to a new report from AM Best.
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With the release of the revised criteria procedure, “Best’s National Scale Ratings” (NSR), which introduces NSR coverage to three additional countries, an updated AM Best commentary addresses frequently asked questions about NSRs and how they compare with global Best’s Credit Ratings.
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The number of insurers outsourcing investments to asset managers continues to grow, particularly in the U.S. life/annuity (L/A) industry, according to a new AM Best report.
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Rated U.S. captive insurance companies reported another strong year in 2024 and continued to outpace their commercial market peers despite a 14% drop in net income, according to a new AM Best report.
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AM Best is maintaining its stable outlook on Vietnam’s non-life insurance segment, citing structural economic advantages and robust demand that are fuelling the expansion of non-life insurance in the country.
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After experiencing a decline in 2024, crop insurance premium volume is expected to hold steady in 2025, according to a new report from AM Best.
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Rankings |
| U.S. group accident and health industry's comprehensive hospital & medical contracts increased 4.3% in 2024 to $45.16 billion, according to a new Best Rankings report.
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| U.S. private flood direct premiums written sank 10% in 2024 to $1.29 billion, according to a new Best's Rankings report.
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| U.S. individual comprehensive hospital and medical accident and health insurance premiums contracts rose 52.0% in 2024, according to a new Best's Ranking.
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| U.S. life/health disability income premiums for accident and health contracts decreased 10.8% to $29.39 billion in 2024, according to a new Best's Rankings report.
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