Dec 28, 2025-Jan 3, 2026

Insurance Market

Bermuda's commercial long-term insurance sector GWP hit $200bn in 2024: BMA
Bermuda's commercial long-term insurance sector recorded gross written premiums of $200.1 billion in 2024, a 17.8% increase year-on-year, with total assets rising 19.1% driven by reinsurance demand amid economic challenges and an ageing population. The sector demonstrated strong resilience with a median solvency ratio of 286%, high liquidity, predominant investment in investment-grade bonds, and the ability to withstand severe stress scenarios as confirmed by BMA testing.

US P/C Insurance Underwriting Profitability Strong Despite Headwinds
Fitch Ratings maintains a neutral outlook for the US property and casualty insurance sector in 2026, with strong underwriting profitability persisting from 2025's exceptional results, including a projected combined ratio of 94 percent improving to around 93.7 percent for the year and an adjusted return on surplus of 10.1 percent. Despite headwinds such as increasing competition, geopolitical uncertainty, slowing economic growth, a challenging legal environment, and reserve concerns in casualty lines, performance is expected to remain stable in 2026 with a combined ratio of 96 to 97 percent and return on surplus of 9.1 percent.

US P/C Posts $35B YTD Underwriting Gain; By-Line Premium Growth Revealed
The U.S. property and casualty industry reported a $35 billion net underwriting gain for the first nine months of 2025, a significant improvement from $3.7 billion the previous year, supported by a 94.0 combined ratio, 7 percent growth in net earned premiums, reduced catastrophe impacts, and $18 billion in favorable reserve development. Premium growth varied by line, with double-digit increases in commercial auto liability and other liability, while pretax operating income surged 52 percent to $102.4 billion amid higher investment returns, though net income declined due to lower realized capital gains.

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Reinsurance Market

Abundant Reinsurance Capacity Accelerates Market Softening During 1/1 Renewals
Abundant reinsurance capacity from strong 2025 reinsurer returns and low catastrophe losses accelerated market softening at the January 1, 2026 renewals, resulting in double-digit rate reductions for property catastrophe programs and innovative solutions such as record catastrophe bond issuance. Casualty and cyber renewals remained generally stable with tailored structures and pricing pressures, enabling cedents to secure competitive terms and broader coverage amid disciplined underwriting.

First View: Options and Opportunities | GallagherRe
Gallagher Re's First View report on January 1, 2026 reinsurance renewals highlights plentiful capacity and modest demand growth, resulting in significant double-digit risk-adjusted rate reductions across property, specialty, cyber, and international casualty lines, with buyers prioritizing price optimization over expanded coverage. Property programs saw increased options and some restoration of frequency protection, while casualty renewals focused on U.S. loss trends and underwriting adjustments amid abundant capital fostering competition and structural flexibility.

Re-balancing: Howden's 1.1.26 market report
Howden Re's 1.1.2026 market report describes a re-balancing reinsurance market at January 1 renewals, with increased competition and capacity leading to significant rate reductions, including 14.7 percent for global property catastrophe, 16.5 percent for property retrocession, and 17.5 percent for global direct and facultative property, returning pricing to levels seen around four years ago alongside higher attachments and tighter terms. Strong reinsurer performance in the first nine months of 2025, despite major losses like the Los Angeles wildfires, supports a favorable outlook focused on innovation in areas such as cyber, renewables, and data centers amid global risks and economic volatility.

Record Reinsurance Capital Pivotal to Profitable Growth Opportunities for Insurers - Aon Renewal Report
Aon's Reinsurance Market Dynamics January 2026 Renewal report highlights that record reinsurance capital of $760 billion and a benign hurricane season drove competitive market conditions, resulting in strong double-digit rate reductions for non-loss impacted property catastrophe and regional property renewals. Insurers are positioned to reinvest premium savings into growth initiatives, with expanding capacity supporting emerging risks such as data center investments and casualty liabilities, alongside increased options in facultative and structured reinsurance solutions.

Reinsurance buyers experience market softening as reinsurers grow capital following strong returns
Guy Carpenter reports that reinsurance buyers experienced market softening at the January 1, 2026 renewals due to expanded capacity and reinsurers' strong capital growth of 9% in 2025, following a 17% return on equity and lower catastrophe losses estimated at $121 billion. Property catastrophe placements saw double-digit risk-adjusted rate reductions for non-loss impacted programs, increased ILS activity with catastrophe bond issuance at record highs exceeding $58 billion outstanding, while casualty renewals remained generally stable with nuanced outcomes based on portfolio performance.

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Litigation & Mass Torts

APCIA's 2026 Agenda to Combat Legal System Abuse, Protect Insurance Affordability
The American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA) has outlined its 2026 advocacy priorities to combat legal system abuse, including greater disclosure in third-party litigation funding, reforms to curb misleading legal advertising, and measures against frivolous lawsuits that drive up claims costs and impose a significant "tort tax" on households. The agenda also focuses on strengthening state-based insurance regulation for risk-based pricing, addressing external cost drivers through auto safety enhancements and disaster resilience investments, and promoting competitive markets to maintain affordable personal and commercial insurance.

Target, Walmart, Whole Foods Targeted in Botulism Suits
Lawsuits against baby formula maker ByHeart for selling products contaminated with botulism spores, leading to 51 infant hospitalizations, are expanding to include retailers Target, Walmart, and Whole Foods as defendants due to ByHeart's potential insolvency. Attorney Bill Marler is adding the grocery chains this week, emphasizing their moral and legal responsibility to support affected families, while the FDA criticized Target and Walmart for delays in removing recalled items from shelves.

US Justice Department Using Fraud Law to Target Companies on DEI, WSJ Reports
The Trump administration's Justice Department is investigating major U.S. companies, including Google and Verizon, over their diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs in hiring and promotions, using the False Claims Act to probe potential fraud. The probes span sectors like automotive, pharmaceuticals, defense, and utilities, aligning with broader efforts to eliminate federal DEI initiatives and discourage them in the private sector.

US Labor Board Abandons One of Its Cases Against Musk's SpaceX
The U.S. National Labor Relations Board withdrew its complaint against SpaceX accusing the company of imposing illegally coercive severance and arbitration policies, including confidentiality requirements, following SpaceX's constitutional challenge to the agency's structure. This decision resolves one federal court case through a joint dismissal motion and reflects broader retreats by the NLRB amid leadership changes and similar challenges from companies like Amazon.

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Emerging Risks & Technologies

Aflac Says 22.6M People Affected by Cyber Incident Earlier This Year
Aflac disclosed that a cybersecurity incident discovered on June 12, 2025, affected over 22.6 million individuals by potentially exposing sensitive personal information including names, Social Security numbers, health data, and claims details. The breach was contained quickly without ransomware or system disruptions, with notifications to affected parties and authorities completed, though it has prompted an ongoing proposed class-action lawsuit and underscores escalating cyber risks in the insurance sector.

Freight Broker Says $400K in Lobster Meat Stolen in Fictitious Pickup
A freight broker reported that $400,000 worth of lobster meat was stolen from a Massachusetts facility in a fictitious pickup scam involving forged documents and cyberattacks, with thieves impersonating a legitimate driver. The broker is pursuing an insurance claim to cover potential liability, amid ongoing investigations and calls for stronger measures against rising organized cargo thefts.

Nationwide Spending $100M on AI to Beef up Claims Efficiency, Customer Experience
Nationwide is investing $100 million annually in artificial intelligence over the next three years as part of a broader $1.5 billion technology initiative through 2028 to improve claims processing efficiency and customer experience. The company has deployed generative AI tools for summarizing claims notes and call transcripts, upgraded contact centers with advanced voice recognition, and integrated AI into digital claims submissions while ensuring human oversight for complex cases.

Porsche Recalling 173K US Vehicles Over Rearview Camera Image Issue
Porsche is recalling over 173,000 vehicles in the U.S., including various models from 2019 to 2025 such as Cayenne, 911, Taycan, and Panamera, because the rearview camera image may fail to display when shifting into reverse, violating federal rear visibility safety standards. Dealers will provide free software updates to address the issue, which affects multiple model years and hybrid variants.

The 14 Global Trends That Will Shape the Climate in 2026
Global climate trends for 2026 indicate that mitigation efforts remain off track, with policy divergences such as U.S. fossil fuel prioritization and regulatory rollbacks contrasting China's clean tech exports accelerating decarbonization in developing nations. These shifts, alongside advancing climate risk modeling, nuclear and renewable energy dynamics, and potential grid strains from data centers and AI, will amplify extreme weather exposures and protection gaps impacting property and casualty insurance claims.

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People Moves

Aon Announces Extension of CEO Contract
Aon plc announced that its Board of Directors has approved an extension of President and CEO Greg Case's employment agreement, extending the term from April 1, 2028, through December 31, 2030, with updated compensation including a $1.75 million base salary and a $50 million target performance share unit award tied to long-term goals. The extension reinforces leadership continuity at the global professional services firm, with further details available in the company's SEC 8-K filing.

Apollo announces leadership changes for Construction - Apollo Group
Apollo has announced leadership changes in its Construction line of business, with Tim Cook retiring as Head of Construction on December 31, 2025, after establishing the Construction Physical Damage class since joining in 2022 and building strong broker relationships. Matt Larke, who assumed day-to-day leadership as Class Leader for Construction Physical Damage in April 2025, will continue driving growth, supported by Laura Sylvester who joined in July from RSA/Intact to enhance technical expertise and portfolio expansion.

Berkshire Falls on Buffett's Last Day as CEO, Gained 6,100,000% Over 60 Years
Berkshire Hathaway shares closed slightly lower on Warren Buffett's final day as CEO, marking the end of his 60-year tenure during which the company achieved a remarkable 6,100,000% return compared to the S&P 500's 46,000%. Greg Abel assumed the CEO role on January 1, 2026, while Buffett remains chairman, with Ajit Jain continuing to oversee insurance operations including Geico amid the conglomerate's strong cash position and challenges in finding large acquisitions.

Fergus Re Appoints Sharmini Samuels as Chief Underwriting Officer - Fergus Re - Segregated Account Insurance Company
Fergus Re, a Bermuda-based collateralized reinsurance company focused on primary-layer casualty risk, has appointed Sharmini Samuels as Chief Underwriting Officer effective January 1, 2026. Samuels brings over 20 years of casualty underwriting experience from roles at Convex Re and Hiscox Re, and will work with Head of Business Strategy Ash Noronha to diversify the portfolio and improve inforce management.

Tiffany Norman to succeed Pete Schaefer as President and CEO of Hannover Re US - Reinsurance News
Hannover Re US has appointed Tiffany Norman as President and CEO effective January 1, 2026, succeeding Pete Schaefer who retires on December 31, 2025, after leading the company since 2001 and contributing to its significant growth over 27 years. Norman, who has nearly 20 years of experience at Hannover Re US including recent leadership in Annuity Solutions, brings deep expertise in actuarial modelling, pricing, and product development to the role.