News
Tropical Storm Bertha forecast updates: Hurricane experts weigh in
Tropical Storm Bertha continued its slog toward the Gulf Coast, forecasters from the National Hurricane Center said, and remained on track to bring heavy rain, storm surge and gusty winds to several states along the Gulf Coast.
Bertha, the second storm of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, was expected to continue moving west, but the "forecast track and intensity remain highly uncertain," the National Weather Service Austin/San Antonio warned July 21.
The potential for flooding rain is what worries forecasters most: Bertha "is expected to produce rainfall amounts of 2 to 4 inches with isolated higher totals around 8 inches through Friday along the Gulf Coast and adjacent inland locations from western Florida to the Middle Texas Coast, including southern portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana," the hurricane center said.
Strong 2025 momentum masks structural challenges for global insurers--Bain & Company Global Insurance Report 2026
Global insurers delivered strong premium growth and improved profitability last year, but the industry's recent gains are largely cyclical and mask unresolved challenges that it confronts, new research released today by Bain & Company finds.
Bain's Global Insurance Report, Strong Momentum in Insurance, but Structural Challenges Remain finds that global premiums reached an estimated $7.1 trillion in 2025, up from $6.7 trillion in 2024, and doubling in 15 years from $3.6 trillion in 2010, with premium growth expected to exceed the prior decade's rate in every region except South America – and across property and casualty, life, and health insurance.
Profitability also improved, particularly in property and casualty (P&C) insurance, helped by rate increases and a relatively benign year for catastrophe losses. Yet, despite these favorable conditions, Bain cautions that the industry's strong 2025 is not a reliable indicator of its long-term health. Structural challenges around affordability and access, limited economic payoffs from technology investment, and competition across the insurance value chain remain unresolved and could limit future growth, Bain's analysis finds.
Insurance penetration remains low or under pressure in key markets, affordability is strained, and investors continue to question whether insurers can generate durable earnings growth beyond the current cycle, Bain observes. Underlying tension between near-term strength and long-term uncertainty is a key reason that the insurance industry's next phase will depend on lowering the cost of risk, Bain concludes.
Liberty Mutual Turns Liberty Biberty From Famous Ad Flub Into Its Newest Brand Character
Liberty Mutual Insurance today introduced Liberty Biberty™, a new brand character inspired by a familiar phrase that has become part of the company's cultural footprint.
Liberty Biberty — Liberty Mutual's first new brand character in eight years — embodies the warm, fuzzy feeling of getting great coverage and great savings on car insurance. Liberty Biberty — Liberty Mutual's first new brand character in eight years — embodies the warm, fuzzy feeling of getting great coverage and great savings on car insurance.
Rooted in a phrase that already resonated with audiences – first seen in the 2019 ad in which an actor struggles to pronounce the company name – Liberty Mutual is launching its first new character in 8 years to turn that familiarity into a lasting brand asset. Developed and designed by Liberty Mutual and its creative agency Bandits & Friends and crafted by Jim Henson's Creature Shop, Liberty Biberty is the embodiment of the warm, fuzzy feeling you get when you have great coverage at a great price.
Air Conditioning | Liberty Biberty | Liberty Mutual Insurance Commercial - YouTube
[Ed. note: The path from "Stuggling Actor" played by Canadian native, Tanner Novlan, a/k/a Dr. Finn on "The Bold and the Beautiful", and his knack for confusing his lines, leading to a yellow fuzzy character seems to be (pardon the phrase), by accident]
Liberty Mutual's "Biberty" WATCH VIDEO
Financial Results
W. R. Berkley second-quarter profit rises on strong underwriting | Reuters
Commercial insurer W. R. Berkley (WRB.N), reported a rise in second-quarter profit on Monday, boosted by robust investment gains and steady underwriting performance.
Demand for insurance remained resilient as households and businesses continued to seek protection against large and unpredictable losses.
Here are some details:
- The Greenwich, Connecticut-based insurer's net written premiums, a measure of policies written during the period, rose 2.4% to $3.43 billion in the quarter ended June 30.
- The company reported a combined ratio of 90% for the quarter, down from 91.6% in the year-ago period. A ratio below 100% shows that an insurer earned more in premiums than it paid out in claims.
- Net investment income rose 10.4% to $418.7 million in the second quarter.
- W. R. Berkley reported a quarterly profit for common stockholders amounting to $452.3 million, or $1.15 per share, up from $401.3 million, or $1 per share, last year.
Marsh quarterly profit rises on strength in risk management business | Reuters
Insurance brokerage Marsh (MRSH.N), opens new tab reported a jump in second-quarter profit on Tuesday, as it benefited from robust demand for its risk management and consulting businesses.
Insurance spending has remained resilient as individuals and businesses prioritize risk management to safeguard against threats such as climate-related disasters and cyber attacks.
Here are some details:
- Revenue in Marsh's risk and insurance services arm rose 4% to $4.82 billion in the quarter from a year earlier. The consulting arm posted 10% revenue growth.
- Insurance brokerages serve as a bridge between insurers and customers, helping clients find a policy that best suits their needs. They generally pocket a percentage of the premiums paid to insurers as commissions.
"Our performance in the first half underscores strong demand for Marsh's expertise and capabilities across risk, people, strategy, and investments," CEO John Doyle said.
Climate/Resilience/Sustainability
How to Accelerate Recovery From Floods | Insurance Thought Leadership
Forecasts suggest this year's hurricane season could bring lower than average storm activity. But disaster risk is not measured solely by the number of named storms.
It only takes one major flood to expose the vulnerabilities that persist across the US flood protection system. And increasingly, flood losses are not confined to coastal communities or storm surge alone. Flooding driven by heavy rainfall, overflowing rivers, and flash floods are increasingly affecting communities far beyond traditional flood zones, often in places where insurance take-up is low and financial resilience is limited.
This reality highlights an urgent policy challenge; America's flood protection gap continues to widen at a time when economic exposure is growing.
Flooding can happen almost anywhere, yet millions of American households and businesses remain uninsured or underinsured against flood risk. When disasters strike, the consequences extend well beyond individual property losses, which alone are already devastating. Delayed recovery affects local employers, municipal budgets, infrastructure systems, housing markets, and broader regional economic activity.
Adrian Hall is CEO US for Swiss Re Corporate Solutions
State News
Florida's surplus lines market is booming as prices fall | Insurance Business
Money has come rushing back into the state
Florida's surplus lines market is growing fast and getting cheaper at the same time. That's not a sign of distress. It's a sign of how much money has come rushing back into the state.
Two years ago, the state's insurance industry looked completely different. Hurricane losses and a flood of property lawsuits had driven insurers out.
The collapse was severe. In 2022, Florida had less than 10% of the country's home insurance claims but nearly 80% of its insurance lawsuits. Nine insurers went insolvent between 2021 and 2023, and reinsurers raised prices and pulled capacity out of the state rather than keep backing the risk.
The state then passed legal reforms that curbed the litigation, and the money returned: new carriers, outside investors and reinsurance capital all chasing the same business.
AI in Insurance
AI automation hits insurance jobs as Allianz plans cuts
Nearly half of respondents expect AI automation to replace a quarter of staff as Allianz Partners plans to cut up to 1,800 roles
.A GlobalData poll found that nearly half of respondents believe automation will replace over 25% of their company's workforce. Meanwhile, Allianz is reportedly planning to cut 1,500–1,800 roles as the insurer expands its use of AI across the business.
A GlobalData poll conducted in Q4 2025 on Verdict and Business Trade Media International sites (which received more than 2,000 responses) found that 48.6% of respondents believe automation will replace over 25% of their company's workforce. Within this group, 25.2% expect the figure to exceed 50%. However, a separate GlobalData poll also conducted in Q4 2025 found that 44.8% of the 2,000+ respondents were not concerned that automation will replace their job.
Meanwhile, Bloomberg has reported that Allianz Partners plans to cut 1,500–1,800 roles as it expands its use of AI. The reductions—expected across several European countries—will be implemented through severance packages, early retirement schemes, and other voluntary arrangements, according to CEO Tomas Kunzmann. The move reflects a broader trend among European insurers as AI adoption accelerates.
Announcements
InsurGrid Launches Intake-to-ACORD Workflow for Commercial Insurance Agencies
InsurGrid, an AI-powered policy data collection and verification platform for property and casualty insurance agencies, today launched a connected intake-to-ACORD workflow for commercial lines. It combines Custom Intake Forms with an AI-powered ACORD Form Generator, maps structured client and policy data into editable ACORD applications, and lets agents review and change every field before downloading the PDFs.
The workflow brings client answers, policy documents, carrier information and application fields into one submission. Agencies can reduce repeated entry, identify missing information earlier and prepare cleaner applications for producer review.
People
The Hanover CEO to Retire, COO Named CEO-Elect - IA Magazine
John "Jack" C. Roche, president and CEO, will retire on Dec. 31. Richard "Dick" W. Lavey, chief operating officer and president of Hanover Agency Markets, will be his successor.
Yesterday, The Hanover Insurance Group Inc. announced that John “Jack” C. Roche, president and CEO, will retire on Dec. 31. Richard “Dick” W. Lavey, chief operating officer and president of Hanover Agency Markets, will be his successor.
Roche retires after a distinguished 40-year career in the insurance industry and will work closely with Lavey to ensure a successful transition.
Podcast Sponsor
ITC Vegas | Horizon of Possibilities
ITC Vegas September 29, 2026 - October 1, 2026
The largest insurance innovation event in the world - Predict, Prepare, Progress
From the shore, the ocean can appear calm. Yet, under the surface, tectonic plates shift, pressure builds, and currents redirect—long before we detect movement. That’s insurance right now. Climate, technology, regulation, and human behavior are reshaping risk in real time. Change isn’t coming; it’s already here. The real question is how we move forward.
We set our sights on the horizon and turn insight into action.
‘Connected’ proudly sponsors ITC Vegas 2026. Rate Discounts available for ‘Connected’ followers, please contact Alan Demers