In such an eventful year, with dozens of compelling stories as strong contenders, determining the Top 10 of 2011 was no easy task. But, after a lot of laborand internal debatewe feel the final list weve put together successfully captures the essential news of the past 12 months.

The challenge with aging tires is they can hide their decrepitude, unlike a mature actor relying on plastic surgery for youthfulness.

So many insurance-airline programs are now pushed to the fourth quarter that it is becoming increasingly difficult for brokers to manage the renewals effectively, according to a report from insurance broker Willis.

A hard market now would be purely for the purpose of price gouging buyers of insurance, particularly commercial-lines insureds, according to an Americans for Insurance Reform report that says the industrys little understood economic cycle has been used to victimize policyholders for 35 years.