The busy 2011 catastrophe season had a heavy impact on State Farms earnings, as the insurer says its net income slid 56 percent over the previous years results.

Agent satisfaction with their carrier partners shows little change from last year, and regional carriers would appear to be doing a better job with agents than the national carriers, according to an agents association survey.

Despite many insurers suffering operating losses in 2011, excess capital remains throughout the industryand analyst firm Keefe, Bruyette & Woods (KBW) says its likely that insurers will maintain that capital for 2012 growth opportunities rather than return it to shareholders.

In a report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Allstate says the number of Allstate-exclusive agencies has fallen to about 10,000 from about 11,500 in 2010.

Numerous regions of the U.S. experienced severe-weather events last year, from scorching heat and raging wildfires to record flooding and tornado clusters.

Itasca, Ill.-based insurance broker Arthur J. Gallagher says it is expanding its excess and surplus-lines business into Louisiana with the acquisition of First Premium Insurance Group Inc.

Longtime insurance veteran Charles L. Ruoff, president of the consulting firm CR Market Strategies Inc., says a recent report from the Consumer Federation of America (CFA) raises some valid points concerning a shrinking marketplace and the need for the industry to take on more risk, such as flood coverage. (Released...

Berkshire Hathaways insurance group reported a 30.5 percent drop in pre-tax earnings in 2011, driven mainly by $2.6 billion in pre-tax losses from catastrophe events.