Lessons Learned

Since 1899, AM Best has maintained a laser focus on the insurance industry. From the 1906 San Francisco earthquake to the COVID-19 pandemic, AM Best's core mission to provide unbiased, factual reports on insurers' financial health has not changed.

AM Best TV & Audio: FERMA Executive: European Countries Aim To Become More Attractive for Captive Insurance Companies: Also, professionals explore what’s on the horizon for the program market and discuss how and why MGAs are gaining underwriting control.

AM Best Webinars: Senior AM Best Analysts To Explore Factors Expected To Influence the Insurance Industry, Economy in 2025: Professionals also discuss trends affecting the for-hire trucking sector and examine emerging risks and defense strategies in AI-related claims litigation.

AM Best: A Timeline: AM Best Through the Years: Highlights of AM Best’s 125-year history, spanning the 1899 company launch to the 1906 San Francisco earthquake to the COVID-19 pandemic.

AM Best: Standing the Test of Time: Standing the Test of Time: Keys To Surviving and Thriving in Business: AM Best Company is marking its 125th anniversary on Dec. 14, 2024. Chairman, President & CEO Arthur Snyder III reflected on the lessons learned over the company’s long history.

Artificial Intelligence: Leading AI Platforms Explore the Risks of Distributing Via Managing General Agents: Best’s Review posed a question to artificial intelligence models about the risks for insurers that distribute through MGAs.

Asset Management: AM Best: Gradual Increase in Insurers’ Private Equity Investments in 2023: An AM Best analyst discussed a recent Best’s Special Report that says private equity investments rose in 2023 as insurers sought higher yields with alternative options.

Auditors & Actuaries: Top Audit and Actuarial Firms: The firms were ranked by insurance companies’ loss reserves.

Auditors & Actuaries: Top Issues: Gauging New Risks, Auditors and Actuaries Examine Technology, Judgments, COVID-19’s Aftermath: Climate change, nuclear verdicts and life after the pandemic have actuaries and auditors assessing what it all means for insurers.

Best’s Rankings: Top 25 US Fire and Allied Writers – 2024 Edition: Ranked by 2023 direct premiums written.

Best’s Rankings: Top 25 US Inland Marine Writers – 2024 Edition: Ranked by 2023 direct premiums written.

Best’s Rankings: Top 25 US Ocean Marine Writers – 2024 Edition: Ranked by 2023 direct premiums written.

Best’s Rankings: US Fire and Allied Lines – Top Writers by State, Canada and US Territories – 2024 Edition: Ranked by 2023 direct premiums written.

Bookstore: ‘No Second Chances’ When It Comes to Retirement Income, Author Says: In his book, Jeffrey Dellinger discusses the critical challenges retirees face as well as strategies for their savings.

Executive Changes: Lloyd’s Chair To Wind Up Eight-Year Term as Company Welcomes Former UK Treasury Official, Consultant as Successor in May 2025: AIG taps a new CFO, Ascot appoints a chair and fills newly created group chief claims officer role, and Beazley names a successor to retiring CUO.

From the Editor’s Desk: AM Best Through the Years: Best’s Review marks AM Best’s 125th anniversary with an excerpt from an address by AM Best Chairman, President & Chief Executive Officer Arthur Snyder III and a timeline of key events in the company’s history. The December issue also includes the magazine’s ranking of top audit and actuarial firms.

Insolvencies: For Some Insolvent Insurance Carriers, ‘Giving Away the Pen’ to MGAs May Have Contributed to Their Undoing: Allowing managing general agents with specialized expertise too much authority won’t necessarily solve insurers’ problems, some analysts believe.

Insurance Professional Resources: After 16 Years in New Jersey Superior Court, Retired Judge Returns to Bressler, Amery & Ross as Litigation Principal: David Bauman was previously with the law firm for 17 years before embarking on an extensive and diverse judicial career.

Insurance Professional Resources: Louisiana Law Reshapes Lawsuits Against Insurers: The new law adds a requirement that insurers cannot be named in the caption of a case when a direct action is brought and the existence of insurance coverage is not to be disclosed to a jury unless specifically required by law.

Issues & Answers: ISSUES & ANSWERS: Life Reinsurance: An industry leader discusses transaction opportunities and emerging trends in life reinsurance.

Life Insurance: Canadian Life/Annuity Segment: Insurers Navigate Industry Challenges and an Uncertain Economy: Edward Kohlberg, director, AM Best, reports that Canada’s life/annuity insurers performed relatively well in 2023, owing to economic growth and favorable interest rates.

Preferred Podcasters: The Reinsurance Podcast Tackles Ceding, Brokers and Underwriting: Ben Rose and Jerad Leigh, co-founders of tool-kit provider Supercede and hosts of The Reinsurance Podcast, say the platform gives them the freedom to discuss the most interesting aspects of reinsurance with industry guests.

Preferred Publishers: In Other News ...: A roundup of news from publishers around the globe. Access to some sites may require registration or subscription.

Pushing Back the Risk Frontier: Why Insurers Believe Incubating Technology Helps Them Succeed: AM Best TV interviewed Arun Balakrishnan, chairman and CEO at Xceedance, and addressed how companies are incubating technology to help develop cutting-edge practices in the insurance industry.

Risk Adviser: Professional Liability Coverage Sees Social Inflation Remaining: Rising litigation costs are driving loss trends, affecting smaller entities including professional service providers.

State Rate Filings: Texas Regulator: TWIA’s 10% Rate Increase Proposal ‘Unjust’ and ‘Unfair’ to Coastal Property Owners: The department of insurance rejected the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association’s personal and commercial line rate request, despite acknowledging that TWIA’s current rates are inadequate.

State Rate Filings: US Hail/Wind/Hurricane Approved Rate Filings by Overall Effect With Increases of 8% or Greater: Based on an effective date beginning on Jan. 1, 2023, through Dec. 31, 2025.

Trending: Best’s News: ‘Mortgages 90 Days Overdue Double,’ Top 25 US P/C Mutual Writers Lead the List of Trending Best’s Review Articles: Other popular items include a look at Hurricane Milton’s impact on Florida and a surplus lines webinar.

Trending: Best’s Research: Trending Research Features Reports on State Plans, Canadian Market, US Surplus Lines and Title Insurance: Other trending research includes reports on Hurricane Milton, the annuities market and impairments of AM Best rated insurers.

Underwriting & Loss Control: Braking Bad: Faulty Parts, Poor Design Among Top Risks for Bike Manufacturers: Best’s Underwriting Reports and Best’s Loss Control Reports provide insights into the risks and lines of coverage for bicycle manufacturers.

Web Traffic: Web Traffic: Visits to Largest US Inland Marine Insurance Sites: Progressive leads web analytics provider Semrush’s ranking of most-visited U.S.inland marine writer websites.

What AM Best Says: AM Best: FAIR Plan Policies Nearly Double in Five Years: States that have been vulnerable to natural catastrophes are seeing more movement of risks out of the voluntary market and into the residual market.