Consumers of auto insurance in the U.S. received a respite overall from several years of premium increases, but don’t tell that to drivers in some states and don’t look for it to continue. According to online insurance agent Insurify, the average yearly annual premium for full coverage in the U.S. fell 6% to $2,144 in 2025 after the cost increased 46% from 2022 to 2024. However, the statistic may not continue this year. Insurify said it expects a measured 1% increase in the average annual full-coverage premium in 2026 to $2,158, based on loss projections and the current rate environment.…
Author: Awais
Carrier strategies are evolving as loss concentration spreads statewide
MAPFRE Insurance has been denied a preliminary injunction to keep AAA Northeast from selling auto insurance policies in Massachusetts in what the insurer says is a violation of an exclusive marketing agreement it has with the auto club in the state. Superior Court Judge Kenneth W. Salinger found that the insurer failed to provide evidence to support its claims of harms it would suffer if AAA were not blocked from selling right away. The judge noted that a preliminary injunction “must be denied” where money damages would adequately compensate for any harm that plaintiff may suffer before final judgment is…
A California lightbulb manufacturer is paying $100,000 to settle a pregnancy discrimination lawsuit. Feit Electric Inc., a lightbulb manufacturer based in Los Angeles, must pay $100,000 and provide other relief to settle the pregnancy discrimination suit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Workforce provider Eastridge Workforce Solutions assigned a female employee to work at Feit Electric at its Pico Rivera, California warehouse, and she was later discharged because of her pregnancy, according to the EEOC. The alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of pregnancy. The EEOC…
All five offshore wind projects halted by the Trump administration in December can resume construction following a federal judge’s ruling on Monday that cleared Denmark’s Orsted to proceed with its Sunrise Wind project off the coast of New York. Orsted’s request for an injunction blocking the Interior Department order was the fifth brought by an offshore wind developer since the December 22 pause on five leases. The agency stopped work on the multi-billion-dollar facilities due to national security concerns around radar interference. An Interior Department spokesperson said the agency would not comment on pending litigation. Orsted said in a statement…
Returning reinsurance capacity is reshaping captive conversations in 2026
Florida endured another day of bitter cold that damaged the state’s citrus crop and prompted a local utility to ask residents to reduce electricity use. Freeze warnings and cold weather advisories cover a large portion of the state, the National Weather Service said. Jacksonville saw a low of 22F (-6C) and Orlando fell to 24F on Sunday, both daily records, while Tampa dropped to 29F, two degrees shy of its record. “There was significant damage to the remaining oranges to be picked in central Florida,” said Jim Roemer, a meteorologist who publishes the WeatherWealth newsletter. “Many key areas were well…
The late January winter storm will caused insured losses of $6.7 billion, making it one of the costliest winter storms since 1950. The estimate comes from catastrophe modeler KCC, headed by modeling pioneer Karen Clark. The tally includes privately insured losses from damage to residential, commercial and industrial properties from the snow, ice, wind, and deep freeze that engulfed more than half of U.S. states, affecting about 200 million people starting on Jan. 23 and lasting until Jan. 27. If KKC’s estimate is accurate, Winter Storm Fern will the third costliest winter event to insurers. Fern’s freezing temperatures caused the…
Global reinsurance firm Swiss Re is now targeting up to $150 million of aggregate and subsequent event retrocession covering North American peak perils from its new Matterhorn Re Ltd. (Series 2026-1) catastrophe bond, while price guidance for each of three tranches of notes have been raised to the top-end of initial ranges, Artemis can report.It’s a slight increase from an initial target size for the issuance of $125 million when it launched around the middle of January. At that time no individual sizes were given for the three tranches of Series 2026-1 notes that Matterhorn Re Ltd. is offering, but…
Munich Re Specialty – Global Markets, Syndicate announced the launch of The Pandemic Consortium, a Lloyd’s market initiative which will be focused on offering parametrically triggered catastrophic communicable disease insurance. The consortium will offer a proactive emerging risk transfer solution to mitigate against the impacts caused by pandemic and epidemic risks. Many businesses are not covered against this risk in their insurance policies and face a protection gap without the solutions the consortium provides. This is despite modeling experts such as Metabiota (now called Ginkgo Bioworks) and Airfinity predicting a close to a one-in-three chance of another pandemic on the…
Despite the conversion, each company will retain its name, including the word “mutual,” according to the order. The regulator noted there will be no changes to policy terms or existing business operations, and policyholders will retain voting control following the reorganization.
A federal grand jury on January 30 indicted a Massachusetts married couple for their alleged involvement in a scheme to defraud individuals and insurance providers through their business, BL Insurance Brokerage, LLC. According to U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley of the District of Massachusetts, Brendan Lawler and Lisa Lawler, of New Bedford, were charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. In total, through this scheme, federal prosecutors allege that the Lawlers defrauded at least 50 individuals or insurance providers and stole more than $750,000 from insurance providers, premium finance companies and hard money lenders. According to Foley, both defendants were…
Vehicle thefts fell by 25% in Arizona in 2025 to the lowest rate in decades, and the third consecutive year of a decrease in the state, a new report shows. Data from the Arizona Automobile Theft Authority’s Auto Crime Tracker database shows that 12,686 vehicles were stolen in 2025 compared with 17,010 stolen in 2024. The 2025 for vehicle thefts was the lowest since the AATA’s inception in 1992. The record low was 16,785 in 2015. The Chevrolet Silverado remained as the top stolen vehicle with a reported 627 thefts. The Hyundai Elantra (418 thefts), the Hyundai Sonata (323), the…
The European food safety body on Monday advised a maximum threshold for the cereulide toxin used in infant formula, prompting some French producers to withdraw additional products from the market. Cereulide, a toxin that can cause nausea and vomiting, has been detected in ingredients from a Chinese factory supplying major formula makers including Nestle, Danone and Lactalis. The contamination triggered infant formula recalls in dozens of countries and heightened concerns among parents. Read more: Europe to Decide How Much Toxin in Baby Formula Is Too Much The European Commission asked the European Food Safety Authority to urgently establish a scientific…