The US Casualty market for some coverages has become very competitive, according to the 2023 US Casualty Market Outlook by Risk Placement Services (RPS), as an influx of capacity has helped stabilize the rate environment in desirable classes of business like commercial construction and manufacturing.
"I've never seen this much capacity flood into the market in my 33-year career, and I don't think it will ever happen again," commented Bill Wilkinson, president, National Casualty Brokerage. "Fresh capacity in desirable classes of business is always good news, but it isn't universal across all businesses."
Key takeaways from the US Casualty Market Outlook:
- Most carriers are getting about 10% of rate increase with the first $5 million to $10 million of coverage, but rate increases have been smaller in excess of $10 million, from flat to 5%.
- Inflation is still affecting medical bills, auto repairs and rebuilding costs. And nuclear verdicts continue to impact the Casualty market. "Juries are more focused today on injuries and damages, and not on liability," Wilkinson says.
- Rates in Casualty continue to increase on multi-family residential projects, especially affordable housing policies, as well as wildfire, land clearing and law enforcement legal liability coverages — all of which are difficult to place in the current environment. And the marketplace is shrinking for anything involving younger children, such as waterparks, trampoline facilities, indoor kart tracks and other similar businesses.
Read more in the full 2023 US Casualty Market Outlook.
