Insurance Level News and Press

AM Best Rating Acitivity and News

Best's News: AM Best Finds Rate Action, Investment Gains Drive US P/C Results Despite Headwinds
Jacqalene Lentz, senior director, and David Blades, associate director, industry research and analytics, both of AM Best, discuss new research that finds improved property/casualty underwriting and ...
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Source: BestWire

UnitedHealth Sees $100 Million Lawsuit Remanded on Failure of ERISA Claim
A lawsuit alleging UnitedHealthcare shorted medical providers more than $100 million in reimbursements was remanded back to state court after a federal judge said the insurer failed to raise a valid ...
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Source: BestWire

AM Best Assigns Issue Credit Rating to Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited Senior Unsecured Notes; Comments on Re-Opened Senior Unsecured Notes
AM Best has assigned a Long-Term Issue Credit Rating (Long-Term IR) of “a-” (Excellent) to the recently issued CAD 400 million, 4.4 % senior unsecured notes, due February 2036, of Fairfax Financial ...
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Source: BestWire

Perils Hikes Loss Estimate to $2.1 Billion in Australia for November Severe Storms Event
Australian insurers incurred an estimated A$2.95 billion ($2.1 billion) in losses from severe convective storms that tore through Queensland and New South Wales Nov. 21-27, according to a second ...
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Source: BestWire

New York Life Brings Asset Management Platform Under One Brand for Public, Private Markets
New York Life Insurance Co. said it has launched a unified global asset management brand that plans to bring together all of its asset management businesses across public and private ...
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Source: BestWire

AM Best Assigns Credit Ratings to Redbridge Insurance Company and Affirms Credit Ratings of Redbridge Insurance Company Limited
AM Best assigned the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of B++ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) of “bbb” (Good) to Redbridge Insurance Company (RIC) (Puerto Rico). The ...
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Source: BestWire

Lloyd's Underwriter Aegis London Appoints Chief Information Officer
Lloyd’s underwriter Aegis London has appointed Neil Bayles to the newly created role of chief information officer. Bayles will be responsible for developing and executing the firm’s information ...
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Source: BestWire

Root CEO: Some Carmakers Share Past Driving Data, Enabling Rapid Telematics-Based Quotes
Some carmakers will give insurers a consumer's past driving data, paving the way for Root Inc. to immediately offer a telematics-based insurance quote, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Alex ...
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Source: BestWire

NAIC Task Force Adopts Reserve Assumption Rules Despite Life Insurers' Concerns
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ Life Actuarial Task Force adopted new valuation standards over industry objections that require life insurers to reconcile differences in reserve ...
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Source: BestWire

AM Best Revises Outlooks to Positive and Affirms Credit Ratings of Seguros Universales, S.A.
AM Best has revised the outlooks to positive from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B+ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “bbb-” (Good) of Seguros Universales, S.A. ...
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Source: BestWire

AM Best: Losses From Winter Storms to Carve Into 2026 First-Quarter Earnings
The northeastern blizzard is expected to result in significant but manageable losses for property/casualty insurers, according to a news Best's Commentary discussed by AM Best Industry Research ...
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Source: BestWire

Playback Now Available for AM Best-Hosted Webinar on Monitoring Carrier Financial Strength and Key Industry Developments
Video playback is now available for a complimentary webinar titled “How Insurance Agents and Brokers Can Monitor Carrier Financial Strength and Key Industry Developments,” hosted by AM Best. Access ...
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Source: BestWire

Merchants Insurance Group Names Head of Claims
Merchants Insurance Group appointed Pete Walkup as its vice president, head of claims, effective in February. In his new role, Walkup will oversee all claims operations, with an emphasis on ...
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Source: BestWire

Swiss Re CEO Sees Casualty Gains as Property Rates Continue Slide
A better-than-expected catastrophe experience gave Swiss Re Ltd. a good 2025 result amid costs related to a life/health reinsurance review, softening property reinsurance rates ad reserve ...
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Source: BestWire

Weekly Podcast Highlights - Feb. 27
The chief executive officer of INTX discusses structural shifts in insurtech and workforce skill demands in a sector that is automating and an AM Best economist discusses the resilient U.S. economy ...
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Source: BestWire

Brit Boosts 2025 Profit Despite Rising Rate Pressure
Brit Group posted higher 2025 net profit despite rising pressure on rates and terms. It is the company's first financial results since it reconstituted after the separation of Ki Financial Ltd. ...
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Source: BestWire

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Insurance Information Institute News (IIHS & HLDI)

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Insurance Journal News

UK Appoints Barclays Executive as Top Bank of England Regulator
Britain’s government on Friday appointed a former regulator and current Barclays BARC.L executive, Katharine Braddick, as the Bank of England’s next deputy governor for prudential regulation to try to boost sluggish economic growth. Last year, finance minister Rachel Reeves criticized …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

State Farm to Issue $136M in Dividends to Louisiana Drivers
State Farm will issue dividends to Louisiana drivers totaling $136 million following stronger than expected underwriting performances nationally. State Farm, which writes approximately 30% of the personal auto insurance market in Louisiana, will send the dividend to policyholders this summer, …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

Higginbotham Acquires Illinois-Based Monarch Solutions
Higginbotham announced it has acquired Monarch Solutions Inc., a firm that supports high-net-worth individuals with insurance related strategies that are intended to provide tax savings and estate liquidity. Monarch founder and now Higginbotham Managing Director Kevin Klaas will be based …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

From Dating Scams to Fake Lawyers: OpenAI Details ChatGPT Misuse
OpenAI said it banned accounts linked to Chinese law enforcement, romance scammers and influence operations, including a smear campaign against Japan’s first woman prime minister, in a report detailing the misuse of its ChatGPT technology. The company said several accounts …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

Fire at Ohio Hog Farm Complex Kills 6,000 Pigs
A fire at an Ohio hog farm complex killed about 6,000 pigs and unleashed a large plume of smoke that could be seen for miles across the rural landscape, an official said. Multiple fire departments responded amid sustained winds of …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

Sinkhole Swallows Vehicles at Busy Intersection in Omaha, Nebraska
Surveillance video captured the dramatic moment a sinkhole opened up on a busy intersection in south-central Omaha, Nebraska, swallowing up two vehicles. The incident happened Tuesday afternoon in a trendy section of the Midwest city, when a sport utility vehicle …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

Pentagon Laser Downs Customs Border Patrol Drone in Texas
The Pentagon accidentally shot down a US Customs and Border Protection drone on the Texas border with Mexico using a high-energy laser, according to people familiar with the matter, weeks after a similar incident led to confusion and exposed communication …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

Former Tennessee Agent Charged With Keeping Premium Payments
A Tennessee man was released on bond after he was indicted for allegedly collecting premiums then absconding with the money. Richard Darrel Wolfe, 67, of Hendersonville, was indicted by a Sumner County grand jury last week, charged with 14 counts …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

CDC Declares ByHeart Infant Botulism Outbreak Over, Probe Continues
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared the multistate infant botulism outbreak linked to ByHeart powdered infant formula over on Feb. 26, while health officials continue investigating for the root cause of the contamination. The CDC and the …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

US Judge Again Refuses to Allow New Hampshire to Abolish Auto Inspections
The state of New Hampshire and a federal judge remain on a collision course over the fate of the state’s motor vehicle safety and emissions inspection program. An injunction against a new law that sought to abolish the mandatory inspection …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

Zurich Insurance Said to Near Beazley Deal Funded by Equity Sale Next Week
Zurich Insurance Group AG is nearing an agreement to acquire UK specialty insurer Beazley Plc and raise billions of dollars in equity to help fund the deal, according to people familiar with the matter. The Swiss insurer is likely to …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

Crews Battled a 25,000-Acre Wildfire Near Florida’s ‘Alligator Alcatraz’
Crews in South Florida were trying to contain a wildfire in Big Cypress National Preserve that had burned more than 25,000 acres (100 square kilometers) near the immigration detention facility known as ” Alligator Alcatraz ” as of Wednesday. The …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

After Hedge Fund Interest, UK’s Flood Re Plans More Cat Bonds
Britain’s ultimate backstop against flood-related losses is planning to rely more on the capital markets, after its first ever catastrophe bond drew a lot of interest from specialist investors including hedge fund Fermat Capital Management. Flood Re, a state-backed insurance …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

How China Is Masking Drone Flights in Potential Taiwan-Invasion Rehearsal
A large Chinese military drone has conducted regular flights over the South China Sea in recent months while transmitting false transponder signals that made it appear to be other aircraft, including a sanctioned Belarusian cargo plane and a British Typhoon …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

Heavy Rains Kill Dozens in Southeast Brazil as Flood Risks Mount
Heavy rains that began Monday night have left dozens dead and caused widespread destruction in southeastern Brazil, exposing a longstanding structural problem of housing in high-risk areas vulnerable to seasonal downpours. Storms in the state of Minas Gerais caused rivers …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

Corporate Treasuries Are Slow to Adopt AI, Survey Finds
Treasury departments in global companies are struggling to adopt artificial intelligence tools, according to a Crisil Coalition Greenwich survey, underscoring how slowly the technology is penetrating a critical function in corporate finance. Crisil’s survey of 100-plus firms from the US, …
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

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