Thanks To Tort Reform & Patient-Safety Push, Med-Mal Performing Well

By Chad Hemenway, PropertyCasualty360.com

Medical-malpractice insurers are enjoying profitable results, even though rates are decreasing. “It’s a good time to be in this line of business,” says Robert Allen, senior vice president of medical-professional liability for Torus.

Mutual Insurers Addressing Trying Challenges With Healthy Attitude

By Mark E. Ruquet

To say the past few years have been a challenge for mutual insurers would be an understatement with as they’ve dealt with an almost decade long soft market, a prolong economic downturn and record catastrophe numbers this year.

Brokers & Buyers Assess The State Of Post-Crisis Chartis

Buyers and brokers discuss doing business with Chartis three years after the government bailout of its parent company, AIG.

Analysts Approve Of Recent Moves At Chartis, But Await Better Results

By Chad Hemenway, PropertyCasualty360.com

In the view of industry analysts, Chartis is moving in the right direction, but “there’s still a lot of fixing to do,”

Commercial Prices Hardening, But Reinsurance Market ‘Directionless’

By Mark E. Ruquet, Phil Gusman, PropertyCasualty360.com

A recent survey of commercial insurers indicates rates are beginning to harden, but brokers speaking at the Reinsurance Rendezvous in Monte Carlo paint a picture of an uncertain market, particularly for reinsurers, and of executives searching for direction on how to be profitable.

Specialty Premium Growth Outpaces Other Lines

By Phil Gusman, PropertyCasualty360.com

Specialty insurers increased premium at an average 4 percent annual-growth rate over the past five years, beating the industry average, which remained close to flat over that time, a Conning Research & Consulting report says.

U.S. Still Leads Way For Gross-Written Premiums

By Mark E. Ruquet

With global gross-written premiums (GWP) for the P&C insurance industry standing at $1.15 trillion, the United States still ranks No. 1 in premium volume, but expansion of the marketplace remains a challenge for insurers, according to Aon Benfield.

New Estimates: U.S. Insured Irene Losses Up To $6.6B; NFIP Losses Under $1B

By Chad Hemenway, PropertyCasualty360.com, Phil Gusman, PropertyCasualty360.com

Recent Hurricane Irene estimates put U.S. insured losses between $1.6 billion and $6.6 billion.

Texas Wildfire Losses Could Reach $250 Million

By Mark E. Ruquet

A beleaguered Texas continues to battle new outbreaks of wildfires across the state, and the Insurance Council of Texas says losses could reach a quarter-billion dollars as the number of homes lost rises to close to 2,000.

COASTAL Act Could Spell Trouble For NFIP Extension

By Arthur D. Postal, PropertyCasualty360.com

Extension of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) could be complicated by the decision of members of the Senate Banking Committee to provide bipartisan support for adding a provision in the NFIP that would split the difference on the sensitive “wind-vs.-water issue.”

Company Comeback

By Bryant Rousseau, PropertyCasualty360.com

All publicity is good publicity,” the saying goes. Somehow, I bet the employees of AIG would beg to differ with that statement.

Self-Service Web Portals For Clients Give Indie Agents An Edge

By Richard Roy

Providing clients with on-demand policy and account access is key to providing customers the kind of 24/7 service they have come to expect in this age of electronic connectivity. By creating such an online connection with both personal and commercial policyholders, agents can boost customer satisfaction as well as client...