The soft market continues unabated, but at least it is showing some indication of stabilizing itself as a monthly composite barometer of rates holds steady for a fourth month at minus-5 percent.
"It seems the market is stuck at minus-5 percent on a composite basis," said Richard Kerr, chief executive officer of Dallas-based MarketScout, an insurance exchange that produces a monthly report. "The rates by industry, coverage or account size change a bit each month, but generally all categories are staying in the same range of premium reductions."
For the fourth month in a row, the overall market barometer came in at minus-5 percent. The last time it changed was back in October when the composite rate moved to minus-4 percent.
Mr. Kerr noted that general liability remains the "most aggressively priced coverage" at minus-6 percent, down from minus-5 percent in January. For December and November the rate sat at minus-6 percent.
In terms of competitive pricing, general liability and commercial property have held firm over the past four months at minus-5 percent.
Least aggressively priced were workers' compensation, professional liability and surety. These lines have held steady over the past four months at minus-1 percent.
On a month-to-month basis, account sizes did not move dramatically. Small accounts stood at minus-1 percent while large accounts remained unchanged at minus-5 percent.
Medium and jumbo accounts saw a slight change of one percentage point, as medium-size account went from minus-5 percent in January to minus-4 percent. Jumbo accounts moved from minus-6 percent at the start of the year to minus-5 percent, where they had been for both December and November.
Mr. Kerr noted that energy accounts moved from minus-4 percent to minus-5 percent, making them more competitive. Energy stood at minus-2 percent for December and November. He said one insurer was primarily responsible for driving that market softer but did not reveal the name of the carrier.
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