News
Potential Tariff Impact on Auto Insurance and Collision Repair - PartsTrader
The proposed tariffs on countries importing goods to the U.S. by the Trump administration would increase the cost of parts, which make up roughly 43% of the average total collision repair paid by insurers.
As a result, insurers are likely to pass on these additional costs to consumers through rate increases. This means that consumers may see higher insurance premiums as a result of the tariffs. It’s important for consumers to be aware of these potential impacts on their expenses, as insurers will undoubtedly pass those additional costs on to the consumer through rate increases.
About 60% of replacement parts used to repair cars in the US are imported, mainly from Mexico, The People’s Republic of China and Canada, said Bob Passmore, vice president for the American Property Casualty Insurance Association. New tariffs would increase the cost of parts, which account for about 40% of the average total repair bills borne by insurers and would prompt them to eventually increase rates, he said.
Liberty Mutual Sued for Unfairly Dropping California Homeowners' Policies
New class action lawsuit alleges Liberty Mutual wrongfully denied policy renewals based on misleading and false property condition reports.
A class action lawsuit has been filed against Liberty Mutual Insurance Company and Liberty Mutual Fire Insurance Company for unjustly non-renewing homeowners' insurance policies in California.
The lawsuit, brought by Singleton Schreiber LLP on behalf of plaintiff Maria Badin and similarly affected policyholders, claims that Liberty Mutual relied on inaccurate aerial inspection reports to deny policy renewals, leaving homeowners scrambling for expensive alternatives.
The lawsuit alleges that Liberty Mutual conducted flawed aerial inspections, falsely reporting issues such as algae, mildew, or mold on homeowners’ roofs. Despite homeowners providing evidence refuting these claims, Liberty Mutual refused to reverse these decisions.
"Homeowners who have faithfully paid their premiums for decades are being blindsided by these wrongful cancellations," said Michelle Meyers, attorney at Singleton Schreiber LLP. "Liberty Mutual is exploiting inaccurate inspections to avoid covering homeowners, forcing them into costly and inferior insurance plans."
Treasury’s FIO Releases ‘Flawed’ Homeowners Insurance Report, Industry Says
The U.S. Treasury’s Federal Insurance Office last week released what it called the “most comprehensive data on homeowners insurance in history.”
Weeks after a U.S. Senate committee released a study and held a hearing on the affect of climate change on homeowners insurance nonrenewals, the FIO’s report also touched on nonrenewal rates as well as the general availability and affordability of homeowners insurance.
Diminished Value Not Covered by Standard Auto Policy, State High Court Rules
The Massachusetts standard auto policy does not require an insurer to pay inherent diminished value (IDV) to a claimant whose vehicle is damaged by one of its insureds.
The Massachusetts Supreme Court in a 6-0 ruling has upheld dismissal of a proposed class action brought against Commerce Insurance Co. on behalf of claimants denied payments to cover the diminished fair market value of their vehicles after collisions and repairs.
AI in Insurance
How AI insurtech improves efficiency while keeping the human touch
The insurance industry is in the midst of a groundbreaking shift, fueled by the rise of insurtech and AI. This powerful duo is unlocking unprecedented efficiencies, reducing errors, and streamlining operations — transforming the way insurance is delivered.
But while AI is revolutionizing workflows, one thing remains certain: it can’t replace the people at the heart of the industry.
Brokers and underwriters remain indispensable, particularly in areas where judgment, empathy, and personalized service are essential. The challenge — and opportunity — lies in finding the perfect balance of leveraging AI’s power to enhance efficiency, while ensuring human expertise remains the cornerstone of client relationships and decision-making.
Common challenges in insurance
As many know, the insurance workflow can be long, complicated, and prone to human error. A single mistake in underwriting or policy submission can lead to big problems, such as delays, increased risk, and even disputes. These issues can be costly for brokers, carriers and customers.
However, insurtech solutions that leverage AI can prevent many of these problems from happening by checking policy information for mistakes, speeding up submissions and approvals and helping brokers follow strict industry compliance rules and guidelines.
When used correctly, AI makes processes smoother and seamless, freeing up brokers to focus on high-value tasks that require human judgment, such as building relationships and addressing unique client needs.
Dave Brooks is the director of Marketing at Billyard Insurance Group’s (BIG)
Commentary/Opinion
Groundhog Day for Desk Adjusters: How Agentic AI is Breaking the Endless Claims Cycle
A Sunny Forecast this Weekend with Agentech’s Digital Coworkers (but let’s hope Punxsutawney Phil doesn’t see his shadow)
Every morning, the alarm clock blares. The screen flickers on. The emails pile up. And for insurance desk adjusters and claims handlers, the same exhausting, mind-numbing tasks await. Click, toggle, copy, paste, review, repeat.
If this sounds familiar, that’s because it is. Like Bill Murray’s character in Groundhog Day, claims professionals live in an endless loop of administrative monotony—stuck processing the same paperwork, chasing down missing documentation, re-entering data into multiple systems, and waiting for approvals. Instead of focusing on meaningful, high-value work like adjudicating claims or assisting policyholders, they’re trapped in a cycle of digital drudgery.
And just like in the movie, where Murray’s character relives the same day over and over again, desk adjusters wake up to a new stack of the same repetitive tasks every morning. This cycle isn’t just frustrating—it’s costly. Administrative burdens extend claim closures, increase cycle times, and lead to a worse experience for policyholders who are left waiting for resolution.
So how do we break free from the Groundhog Day loop of claims processing? Enter Agentic AI, the digital workforce that’s rewriting the script for adjusters.
Announcements
EagleView Unveils Advanced Property Data Ecosystem
EagleView, a leader in aerial imagery and geospatial intelligence, has announced the release of its advanced property data ecosystem. The platform aggregates more than 60 petabytes of high-definition aerial imagery and asset data, offering critical insights into property characteristics. The system provides details such as roof measurements, property conditions, structure identification, and solar suitability at the parcel level. Artificial intelligence powers the data extraction process, ensuring precision and efficiency.
The ecosystem is further strengthened through key partnerships with analytical service providers, enhancing the depth and breadth of available data. Customers can seamlessly integrate EagleView's intelligence into their proprietary workflows, decision-making models, and automated processes via API access. The property data solutions can also be customized to meet specific industry needs.
"We have a significant data warehouse of accurate asset intelligence with data derived from 25 years of proprietary aerial image capture. In addition to leveraging our 3 billion images that cover more than 94% of the US population, we've formed best-in-class property data alliances to supplement and enhance our offering," said EagleView CEO Piers Dormeyer. "Now is the right time to make this unrivaled property intelligence resource available to the market and let innovators scale the possibilities."
Data Privacy
The Role of Data and Privacy in Modern Mobility
Federal regulators recently banned General Motors and OnStar from providing certain data to consumer reporting agencies for five years. This decision stems from allegations that the companies collected and sold consumer vehicle data without obtaining proper consent. Shortly after, it was revealed that the Texas Attorney General filed a lawsuit against Arity, a subsidiary of Allstate, for allegedly violating state data privacy laws by improperly collecting consumer vehicle data.
In light of these events, the conversation around data privacy has reached a pivotal moment in the automotive industry. Addressing growing concerns while championing the immense value of data is not just a necessity—it’s a responsibility that impacts OEMs, insurers, drivers, and society as a whole.
Posted on LinkedIn: Michael O'Shea, COO, and Scott Nelson, CIO, at MOTER Technologies
Allstate, Arity Legal Troubles Mount; Class Action Filings Allege Privacy Violations
Allstate and its data subsidiary. Arity, are facing new legal challenges detailed in class action filings, which allege they violated federal and state privacy laws to collect driving data.
Several law firms have announced the class actions, filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on behalf of named plaintiffs in Georgia and California—and “other similarly situated” potential class members—who believe that the defendants collected their driving data without their consent through software embedded in third-party mobile apps. The plaintiffs also believe that the defendants monetized the data by selling it to other insurers and using it to raise car insurance prices.
Los Angeles Wildfires
Insurance Payouts at $4 Billion and Counting for LA Wildfires
Preliminary data show insurance companies have paid out more than $4 billion for losses from the biggest two of the Los Angeles-area wildfires that swept through the region and destroyed tens of thousands of homes earlier this month.
This week the picture of just how destructive the L.A. wildfires were is coming into focus now that claims professionals have been able to gain some access to the affected areas.
2025 PREDICTIONS
Insurance Information Institute Projects P/C Insurance Replacement Costs Outpacing CPI in 2025
The Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I) expects the pace of increase in average property/casualty insurance replacement costs to exceed increases in the consumer price index in 2025 and beyond as auto replacement costs rise for the first time since 2022 as CPI continues to decline.
Triple-I’s replacement cost index for personal and commercial auto tracks changes in the price of vehicles, parts, and equipment that make up the replacement costs facing insurance carriers providing collision insurance for both personal and commercial motor vehicles. These costs – which have increased by as much as 30 percent over the past five years,
20 Issues to Watch in 2025 | Insurance Thought Leadership
While many more than 20 key issues matter for risk managers, climate change, mental health, and aging infrastructure are among those that stand out.
Out Front Ideas with Kimberly and Mark kicks off yearly with our popular 20 Issues to Watch webinar. While there are certainly more than 20 issues to discuss, we focused on the high-impact matters relating to risk management and employee benefits that need more attention. These are essential issues for every risk manager, HR manager, and insurance professional to monitor in 2025.
Kimberly George is a senior vice president, senior healthcare adviser at Sedgwick. She will explore and work to improve Sedgwick’s understanding of how healthcare reform affects its business models and product and service offerings.
Mark Walls is the vice president, client engagement, at Safety National. He is also the founder of the Work Comp Analysis Group on LinkedIn, which is the largest discussion community dedicated to workers' compensation issues.