P/C Insurers See Solid Performance In First Half Of 2021 – InsuranceNewsNet

InsuranceNewsNet — Your Industry. One Source.™

Sign in
  • Subscribe
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Contact
Home Now reading Property and Casualty News
Topics
    • Life Insurance
    • Annuity News
    • Health/Employee Benefits
    • Property and Casualty
    • Advisor News
    • Washington Wire
    • Regulation News
    • Sponsored Content
    • Webinars
    • Monthly Focus
  • INN Exclusives
  • NewsWires
  • Magazine
  • Free Newsletters
Sign in or register to be an INNsider.
  • INN Exclusives
  • NewsWires
  • Magazine
  • Free Newsletters
  • Insider
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Editorial Staff
  • Contact
  • Newsletters

Get Social

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
INN Daily Newsletter Hot Off The Wires
Property and Casualty News RSS Get our newsletter
Order Prints
November 9, 2021 Property and Casualty News No comments
Share
Share
Tweet
Email

P/C Insurers See Solid Performance In First Half Of 2021

By Press Release

JERSEY CITY, N.J., November 9, 2021 — Private property/casualty insurers in the United States posted strong net income growth in the first half of 2021 as the country continued to recover from the economic disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a report from Verisk, a leading global data analytics provider, and the American Property Casualty Insurance Association.

As the U.S. economy recovers from the pandemic, insurers' net income rose to $37.5 billion in the first half of the year, up from $24.3 billion in the first half of 2020. The annualized rate of return on average policyholders' surplus, a key measure of overall profitability, jumped to 7.9% in the first half of 2021, up from 5.8% in the first half of 2020. The industry's combined ratio, a measure of underwriting profitability, also improved to 96.7%.

Reflecting an uptick in overall economic activity, insurers wrote $24.4 billion more in premiums during the first half of this year ($348.4 billion) than in the comparable period in 2020 ($324 billion). Earned premiums grew 5.3% to $329.1 billion for the first half of 2021. Renewal pricing for standard commercial lines – general liability, commercial auto, and commercial property – rose 6.7% in the first half of 2021, compared to 7% in 2020 and 5.1% in 2019, according to Verisk's ISO MarketWatch® solution.

More economic activity may also have resulted in more insurance claims, as commuters returned to roads, businesses resumed operations, and material and labor costs rose. Incurred  losses and loss adjustment expenses (LLAE) rose 6.9% in the first half of 2021 to $229 billion, significantly higher than the 0.8% increase in the first half of 2020. Catastrophe LLAE contributed $28.9 billion to total LLAE (up from $24.7 billion in the first half of 2020), while non-catastrophe LLAE grew 5.6% to $200.1 billion.

"Net written premiums increased 7.5% in the first half of 2021 (10.3% in Q2) as insurers experienced similar increases in losses and loss adjustment expenses (LLAE) from ongoing record wildfires, floods and freezes, a spike in ransomware attacks, worsening inflation, and spiraling litigation costs," said Robert Gordon, APCIA senior vice president, policy, research and international. "While insurers benefited from a positive swing in net realized capital gains, the industry faces ongoing headwinds from climate change, significant deterioration in auto claims severity, growing cyber liability exposure, and emerging losses from the impacts of long-haul COVID. As the pandemic appears to unwind, the industry has been bolstering its balance sheet to protect consumers against increasing natural and man-made catastrophic exposures."

The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic prompted rebates to auto insurance policyholders and $4.4 billion in policyholder dividends in 2020. Though still slightly above the historical average, the $1.6 billion in dividends issued through the first half of 2021 was closer to pre-pandemic dividend levels.

Insurers' income also benefited from $9.2 billion of realized capital gains, a $10.6 billion swing from the losses realized in first-half 2020.

"We clearly see the imprint of the pandemic on the industry's performance through the first half of 2021," observed Neil Spector, president of ISO at Verisk. "Economic activity that was suppressed for much of the first half of 2020 has sprung back, bringing its own set of challenges. Rising material costs and acute labor and supply chain shortages in many sectors create a powerful need for accurate, continuously updated sources of underwriting data to help insurers manage a dynamic risk environment."

Growth In Second Quarter Fuels First-Half Performance

Insurers posted $17.5 billion in net income for the second quarter of 2021, a strong improvement from the $6.4 billion in the year-ago quarter. The income increase was also reflected in annualized rate of return on average surplus, which climbed to 7.3% from 3.2% a year earlier. While improved, the rate of return didn't quite reach the 7.6% achieved in the second quarter of 2019 or the 9% hit in the second quarter of 2018. The industry's combined ratio also improved during the quarter to 97.2% from 100.2% in the second quarter of 2020.

View the full report from Verisk and APCIA.

Older

Wisconsin Insurance Regulators Release Recent Enforcement Actions

Newer

3 Trends That Could Lead To More Opportunities For Advisors

Advisor News

  • Retirement Savers Remain Confident Despite Short-Term Woes
  • City of Memphis Helps Employees With Financial Wellness Programs
  • IRI CEO: ‘I Am Optimistic for Our Industry’s Future’
  • 2/3 Of Near-Retirees Failed Or Barely Passed A Basic Social Security Quiz
  • Crypto As National Currency? Maybe Not A Good Idea
More Advisor News

Annuity News

  • LibertyMark Freedom Fixed Indexed Annuities Launch
  • Nationwide Adds BNP Paribas Global H-Factor Index To FIA
  • Transamerica Launches Structured Index Advantage Annuity
  • Recommending FIAs: Start With The Client’s Objective
  • NC Man Wins First $5 Million Prize In Scratch-Off Game
Sponsor
More Annuity News

Health/Employee Benefits News

  • EBRI Studies Expanding Pre-Deductible Coverage For Chronic Conditions
  • Most Consumers Choose To Pay Higher LTCi Premiums
  • CMS Creates More User-Friendly Medicare Website
  • Integrity Marketing Group Buys Ritter Insurance Marketing
  • Maine Powerless In Big Fight Between Its Largest Insurer And Hospital
More Health/Employee Benefits News

Life Insurance

  • The 5 Secrets To Retaining Financial Sales Professionals
  • Life Insurance Activity Continues Dip In April But Still Stronger Than 2021, MIB Reports
  • Transamerica Adds Execs To Annuity And Life Insurance Team
  • Northwestern Mutual Invests $5M In Black-Led Financial Institutions
  • Protective Life Closes On AUL Acquisition
More Life Insurance

- Presented By -

How to Write For InsuranceNewsNet

Find out how you can submit content for publishing on our website.
View Guidelines

FEATURED OFFERS

Get Linked INN to your industry Connect with INN on LinkedIn to be first on all the news and insights that matter to your industry.

Press ReleasesAll press releases

  • OneAmerica Commits $1 Million Toward Financial Literacy
  • Transamerica Structured Index Advantage Annuity Offers Investors More Certainty with Upside Growth and Downside Protection
  • Senior Market Sales Creates First-of-Its-Kind Lead Acquisition Platform
  • Growing financial services firm Kuvare opens Des Moines office in East Village, continuing expansion in Iowa
  • BetterLife Selects iPipeline® to Digitally Transform Its Business & Better Serve Future Generations
Add your Press Release >

Topics

  • Life Insurance
  • Annuity News
  • Health/Employee Benefits
  • Property and Casualty
  • Advisor News
  • Washington Wire
  • Regulation News
  • Sponsored Content
  • Webinars
  • Monthly Focus

Top Sections

  • Life Insurance
  • Annuity News
  • Health/Employee Benefits News
  • Property and Casualty News
  • AdvisorNews
  • Washington Wire
  • Insurance Webinars

Our Company

  • About
  • Editorial Staff
  • Magazine
  • Write for INN
  • Advertise
  • Contact

Sign up for our FREE e-Newsletter!

Get breaking news, exclusive stories, and money- making insights straight into your inbox.

select Newsletter Options
Facebook Linkedin Twitter
© 2022 InsuranceNewsNet.com, Inc. All rights reserved.
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Sitemap
  • AdvisorNews

Sign in with your INNsider Account

Not registered? Become an INNsider.