By Nicole Friedman and Leslie Scism – Wall Street Journal
Feb. 11, 2020
U.S. companies are paying more for insurance, a reversal after years of flat or declining rates for
property and liability policies.
Insurers have raised prices aggressively in the past year on companies of all sizes across the
country. And they have warned price hikes are likely to continue.
The turnabout underscores a challenging landscape for U.S. insurers following several years of
large catastrophe losses and continued low interest rates, which have weighed on their
investment returns.
Pretax operating income for the U.S. property-casualty insurance industry fell by 8% from 2014
to 2018, even as revenue from insurance premiums grew, according to ratings firm A.M. Best.
Excluding investments and other income, the industry lost money from underwriting in 2016,
2017 and 2018.
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