Annie George

The U.S. P&C insurance industry registered its best first-quarter underwriting result in 2024 in over 15 years. After consistently weak sector results for near two years, the dog days are over. Strong premium gains and easing claims cost inflation contributed to a combined ratio of 94%. Higher investment yields provided an additional boost. Industry return on equity (ROE) was 14%, and we maintain our forecasts for full-year ROE of 9.5% in 2024 and 10.0% in 2025, with premium growth of 8.0% and 5.0% respectively. And we see risks to the upside. Personal lines remain the driver of growth and profitability improvements, and competition is returning to personal auto. Growth in commercial lines, including property, meanwhile, is slowing.

The Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF), a nonprofit organization marking 30 years representing the insurance industry through its mission of helping communities and enriching lives, hosted the IICF Regional Forums this month across five cities. This year's forums in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Dallas and London gathered nearly 800 attendees for discussions centered around advancing the future of work, talent, inclusion and innovation. Since 2013, IICF's leadership events have raised $10 million in support of regional nonprofits helping those in need.

Satterwhite is hardly alone. As the Midwest begins to recover, many won't have flood insurance, which must be purchased separately from homeowners insurance. Federal data shows that across the flooded states of Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa and Minnesota, the government has only issued about 26,500 flood insurance policies combined.

Uber and Lyft reached a $175 million settlement with Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell's office to resolve a multi-year lawsuit that targeted the classification status of drivers working for the two companies, according to a statement released Thursday afternoon.

This year, Vertafore heard from nearly 2,000 individuals working at independent agencies. This diverse pool of insurance professionals shared insights into their day-to-day experience working in the industry, the impacts of the unprecedented hard market, and how they leverage technology to serve their clients.

Researchers at the Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I) have determined that home insurance premiums in Florida rose at a much lower rate than originally projected in 2022 (41% less) and 2023 (80% less). The significant differences in premium averages reflect the impact of legislative legal system abuse reforms as well as lower levels of inflation in replacement costs. Both factors were not anticipated at the time Triple-I's estimates were made.

Insurers told a congressional hearing Thursday that they need the flexibility to determine what they will and won't cover under cyber policies, saying they are still trying to understand the risks associated with cyberattacks.

State Farm General is seeking to dramatically increase residential insurance rates for millions of Californians, a move that would deepen the state's ongoing crisis over housing coverage.

A software vendor has promised a quick fix to a crippling ransomware attack that has hit many of Connecticut's car dealers -- even as an expert on cybersecurity warns that more attacks are likely to impact all aspects of modern life.

The Maelbeek River once connected 58 ponds throughout Brussels, after being vaulted and dried up only 6 of the original ponds remain.