Declarations

Single Digit Growth

“Assuming the economic recovery continues at a modest pace, expected small increases in premium exposures in personal auto and in most commercial lines are the principal drivers of the premium increase,”

—Clint Harris, analyst at Conning Research & Consulting. Its 2011 forecast suggested that the property/casualty insurance industry can expect premium growth of between 3 and 4 percent in 2011, and about 5 percent for the following two years. Premium growth rates for the industry through 2013 will be “well short of what would be considered a meaningful turn in the underwriting cycle,” according to Stephan Christiansen, director of research. Underwriting results are predicted to deteriorate about two percentage points this year compared to 2010.

An ‘Aha’ Moment

“I say bravo to the governing board, that they want to get the information out so that people understand what’s going on in the workers’ compensation system. The most important ‘aha’ moment is the fact about the delta between 27.7 and 40. There’s a very serious issue that’ going on in the California workers’ comp system: indemnity is flat, but medical costs continue to skyrocket.”

—Zenith Insurance President and COO Jan Frank, commenting on the California Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau’s decision to make an informational filing to provide data on cost drivers in the workers’ comp system, instead of making a mid-year pure premium rate filing. It noted pure premium rate inadequacy jumped from 27.7 percent in 2010 to 39.8 percent in 2011.

Not the Only Bad Actor

“These suits are intended to spread liability, but they’re also part of a larger public relations effort for BP. BP wants to remind the world they weren’t the only corporation that was a key player in this cascade of bad events that led to a remarkably bad outcome.”

—David A. Logan, dean of Roger Williams University School of Law in Bristol, R.I., commenting on BP’s move to sue Transocean Ltd, Halliburton Co. and Cameron International Corp., in one of the biggest legal moves since last year’s blowout and oil spill. BP is seeking up to recover the full cost of the disaster – estimated at $42 billion – plus costs, interest and punitive damages from each of the companies that helped it drill the doomed well. (Reuters)