1 articles · Updated · Insurance Business · Aug 21
Summary
Falling 2026 P&C premiums are masking narrower renewal terms, with insurers adding exclusions and tighter language even when headline rates look cheaper.
Automated underwriting is reinforcing that shift: more complete, better-documented submissions win more quotes, while weaker files sink in ranking regardless of the underlying risk.
Excess and umbrella liability remain the clearest exception to the soft market, with average rates up 11% in the first half of 2026 while commercial property premiums fell 4%.
149 nuclear verdicts were recorded in 2025, up from 44 in 2020, driving higher settlements and making lower liability limits riskier for companies with meaningful assets.
The renewal debate is increasingly about asset protection rather than price alone, as brokers weigh when to accept exclusions, self-insure minor risks, or preserve coverage for low-probability catastrophic losses.