Personal Lines

An online survey finds that customers want what insurance agents have to offer when it comes to personal lines insurance, and are eager for producers to take a more active role in delivering those services.

Fitch Ratings does not believe the introduction of a new regulatory regime such as Solvency II should change an insurers creditworthiness, but its effects on the competition, capital and management behavior could result in credit implications.

A day after a Chartis executive questioned whether micro cycles might replace traditional market turns, analyst firm ALIRT Insurance Research weighed in on the question of whether the traditional cycle might be a thing of the past.

The largest of Texas 2011 wildfires, the Bastrop fire, is now expected to cause $325 million in insured losses, up from previous estimates of $250 million, according to the Insurance Council of Texas.

A long-discussed technology program, aimed at attacking the competitive edge direct writers hold over independent agents in personal lines, is becoming a reality with the launch of the Consumer Agent Portal.

The Senate last night unanimously passed legislation extending the National Flood Insurance Program until May 31, 2012.