Personal lines insurers' recent hefty profit trend will falter in 2008 as prices continue to soften, Standard & Poor's Rating Services predicts.

The firm, n its U.S. personal lines outlook report, aid it does not believe "the sizable profit margins of the recent past will continue because of intense rate competition, especially in the auto market…"

S&P said competition and less available new business growth will also reduce profits, s carriers may be tempted to discount product offerings and loosen terms and conditions to maintain their competitive positions and market shares, as they did during the last soft market from 1987-2001.

Continue Reading for Free

Register and gain access to:

  • Breaking insurance news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
  • Weekly Insurance Speak podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
  • Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
  • Critical converage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, BenefitsPRO and ThinkAdvisor
NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.