Best’s Special Report: U.S. Property/Casualty Industry Records $11.2 Billion in Underwriting Income in First-Half 2025

Business Wire

OLDWICK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
The U.S. property/casualty (P/C) industry recorded $11.2 billion in net underwriting income in the first half of 2025, a significant improvement from the $2.9 billion posted in the same prior-year period, according to a new AM Best report.

These preliminary results are detailed in a new Best’s Special Report, titled, “First Look: Six-Month 2025 US Property/Casualty Financial Results,” and the data is derived from companies’ six-month 2025 interim period statutory statements that were received as of Aug. 26, accounting for an estimated 96% of total industry net premiums written.

According to the report, the P/C industry’s combined ratio improved to 96.4 in first-half 2025 from 97.8 in the same period of 2024. AM Best estimates that catastrophe losses accounted for 10.9 percentage points on the six-month 2025 combined ratio, up from an estimated 8.8 points in the previous year.

Growth of 7.5% in net earned premiums in the six-month period offset increases in incurred losses and loss adjustment expenses (LAE), is largely attributable to the January 2025 California wildfires, and other underwriting expenses. An increase in net investment income aided the underwriting gain, boosting pre-tax operating income by nearly 25%. However, a substantial reduction in net realized capital gains, driven primarily by a $47.5 billion decline at National Indemnity Company, contributed to the industry’s net income being cut nearly in half from the same prior-year period to $50.3 billion.

To access the full copy of this special report, please visit http://www3.ambest.com/bestweek/purchase.asp?record_code=357789.

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.