The commercial auto insurance market has faced hardening conditions for much of the past decade, as evidenced by significant underwriting losses, plummeting profitability and continued rate hikes. Although 2022 saw lower average premium increases due to strengthening reserves and 2021’s combined ratio falling below 100 for the first time in several years, this deceleration wasn’t here to stay. According to credit rating agency AM Best, 2022’s combined ratio jumped back up to 105, representing $3.3…

Rising claim frequency and severity have generated hardening conditions across the general liability insurance segment in recent years, prompting ongoing rate increases, stringent underwriting standards and limited capacity. Fortunately, carriers experienced slightly better underwriting results in 2022-23, paving the way for rate deceleration. In other words, although rates have continued to increase during this time frame, they have done so at a slower pace than in previous years. According to industry data, average premium increases…

The commercial property insurance market has faced rising premiums since 2017. While such rate jumps showed some signs of slowing in 2022 by largely remaining within single digits, this moderation didn’t last in 2023. According to industry data, commercial property insurance premiums surged by an average of 20.4% in the first quarter of 2023 alone, representing the first time the segment has seen average rate hikes above 20% in more than 20 years. In the…

BUSINESS FRAUD IN THE DIGITAL AGE: PART 6 One of the best ways to mitigate business fraud is through insurance. There are varying degrees of insurance coverage to protect your business against fraud. Initially, these coverages were provided under a fidelity policy. With the emergence of cyber crimes, cyber liability policies were created. Some of these policies are basic, and some offer robust, cutting-edge coverages. You need to consider the coverage you need and the…

BUSINESS FRAUD IN THE DIGITAL AGE: PART 5 Your business can adopt some important controls to protect against fraud. This is a partial list and should be the beginning of an ongoing review of exposures and protections. What are potential controls? You must have a complex set of defenses to identify and prevent fraud. These should be both operational and technological controls, including: Segregation of duties throughout the accounting, sales, and procurement process. In particular,…

BUSINESS FRAUD IN THE DIGITAL AGE: PART 4 One of the most effective banking controls to protect against fraud is positive pay. Here, we’ll provide a primer on what it is and how it works. What Is Positive Pay? The term positive pay refers to an automated cash-management service used by financial institutions to deter check fraud. Banks use positive pay to match checks issued by companies with those they present for payment. Suspicious checks are returned to their…