Texas Surplus Lines Industry Had a Record-Setting Year in 2018

The Surplus Lines Stamping Office of Texas (SLTX) reported that the state recorded $6.08 billion in excess and surplus insurance premium for 2018, representing an 11.4 percent growth over 2017. The numbers represent another record-setting year for surplus lines filing, according to SLTX.

The stamping office highlighted certain coverages that have shown a continued, significant upward trend of increased premium. Fire and allied lines showed a growth of 15.5 percent (from $1.51 billion to $1.74 billion), while cyber liability increased by 15.8 percent to $89.7 million. Additionally, pollution increased by 9.1 percent to $167 million and terrorism rose by 50.7 percent from $3.4 million to $5.1 million.

The increase can be attributed to general rate and pricing upticks, as SLTX saw only a marginal increase in filing totals for the year. In 2018, 1.05 million filings were recorded, compared to 1.03 million in 2017, a 1.24 percent increase.

SLTX said it has seen several years of record-breaking premium growth in excess and surplus lines. The 2018 premium total is double the amount recorded 15 years ago in 2003 at $2.95 billion.