Good afternoon!
For the latest updates from ICT in the insurance industry, follow us on LinkedIn and make sure to enable notifications đź””
Â
For more Texas-related P&C insurance information and news, visit the ICT website
|
New Year Message from Albert Betts
|
As we begin the new year, I want to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude for your continued membership in ICT and engagement throughout 2025. Your dedication to the people of Texas, creativity, and resilience have been the driving force behind a strong Texas property and casualty market. Together, we’ve overcome challenges, embraced innovation, and strengthened the foundation for an even brighter future.
Â
This new year is a time to reflect on our achievements and look forward to new opportunities to make 2026 another year of excellence.Â
Â
Thank you for your unwavering commitment and we appreciate all of you.
Albert Betts, Jr.
|
ICT and TDI to Host Joint Committee on Insurance Fraud
|
Join ICT and the Texas Department of Insurance on Jan. 22 for the Texas Joint Committee on Insurance Fraud meeting, 1-3:30 p.m., at ICT's offices in Austin, TX. This must-attend session is for SIU professionals and P&C fraud leaders and will feature TDI prosecution and fraud updates, insights on third-party litigation funding and AI fraud, staged-accident and identity-theft trends, plus perspectives from the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud and the National Insurance Crime Bureau. Contact Rich Johnson for more information or to register.
|
Texas Insurance Commissioner Brown Retiring
|
Commissioner Cassie Brown will retire on Feb. 2, 2026, after more than four years leading the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI).
Â
Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott in Sept. 2021, Brown oversaw regulation of the $293 billion Texas insurance market, the second-largest in the nation and the fifth-largest in the world.
|
Recognizing that insurance touches the lives of nearly every Texan, Brown prioritized a fair, stable and resilient insurance marketplace. Under her leadership, she focused on saving consumers millions of dollars through rate reviews, resolving consumer complaints and obtaining restitution for fraud victims. She also deployed department staff to disaster areas across the state, helping consumers in person with insurance questions.
Â
Brown has more than 20 years of public service experience. Before serving as commissioner of insurance, she was commissioner of Workers’ Compensation.
|
DWC Will Host a Quarterly Stakeholders Meeting
|
The Texas Department 0f Workers Compensation (DWC) will host its next quarterly meeting for health care providers and insurance carriers on Wednesday Jan. 21 from 2 to 3:30 p.m. Central Time. The meeting will be held virtually on Zoom and in person at their Austin office.
Â
The meeting agenda is available on DWC's website.
|
|
 Industry News:Â
2025 Top 5 P&C Stories: From Fraud to Wildfires
|
Property and casualty insurance news in 2025 was dominated by fraud investigations, litigation disputes, and climate-driven catastrophes, reflecting mounting pressure on insurers, regulators and policyholders alike. The year’s most-read stories centered on a high-profile medical fraud lawsuit in New York, Florida court rulings reinforcing assignment-of-benefits reforms, and escalating wildfire losses in California that deepened the state’s insurance crisis. Together, these developments highlighted growing scrutiny of claims practices, legal systems and market sustainability as extreme weather and litigation costs intensified.
Key points:
- High-profile fraud litigation drew national attention: A New York civil RICO lawsuit filed by American Transit Insurance Co. accused dozens of clinics and doctors of medical fraud, with 141 of 186 defendants reaching settlements, while several defendants—including the husband of “The View” co-host Sunny Hostin—were dismissed or remain unresolved.
- Florida courts reinforced assignment-of-benefits reforms: A Florida appeals court ruled that a “direction to pay” does not equal an assignment of benefits, backing state reforms aimed at curbing lawsuit abuse blamed for driving up property insurance costs.
- California wildfires intensified insurance market strain: Record-setting wildfires near Los Angeles forced mass evacuations and caused billions of dollars in insured losses, shared among private insurers, surplus lines carriers and the California FAIR Plan.
- California’s insurance crisis deepened amid climate risk: Reports showed insurers pulling back from high-risk areas, leaving more than 150,000 households uninsured in fire-prone regions, with premiums rising 42% and experts warning some properties may become uninsurable without reform.
- Claims-handling practices faced congressional scrutiny: Adjusters and lawmakers alleged “systematic fraud” in property claims handling, accusing insurers of pressuring adjusters to lower estimates, prompting a heated Senate hearing on post-disaster claims practices.
|
|
Global Insurance Market Report (GIMAR)
|
International Association of Insurance Supervisors
|
The global insurance sector remained financially stable through 2024 and is positioned to maintain resilience into 2026, according to the 2025 Global Insurance Market Report from the International Association of Insurance Supervisors. Strong profitability, solid capital positions and improved liquidity helped insurers absorb rising catastrophe losses, inflationary pressures and market volatility. However, regulators warn that climate risk, geopolitical fragmentation and growing exposure to private credit and technology-driven risks are reshaping the industry’s long-term outlook.
Key points:
-
Financial strength remains intact:Â Insurers maintained stable profitability, liquidity and solvency through 2024, with underwriting discipline and investment income supporting results despite higher claims costs.
-
Climate exposure is increasing: Between 22% and 46% of insurers’ general account assets and roughly 62% of equity investments are tied to climate-sensitive sectors, underscoring growing vulnerability to physical and transition risks.
-
Reinsurance capacity remains strong:Â Global reinsurance premiums reached approximately $1.75 trillion, with reinsurers posting a combined ratio near 95%, though higher costs led insurers to retain more risk.
-
Systemic risk continues to decline:Â Aggregate systemic risk among the largest global insurers fell modestly, reinforcing findings that insurers pose significantly less systemic risk than banks.
-
Emerging risks are reshaping strategies:Â Geopolitical fragmentation, increased reliance on private credit, expanding use of artificial intelligence and rising cyber threats are adding complexity to underwriting, investments and regulatory oversight.
|
|
Massive Texas Premium Pain: 35% Say Insurance Costs Top Disaster Worries
|
Reinsurance pricing declined across most lines at January 1 renewals as rising capital levels, strong profitability and record insurance-linked securities issuance increased competition, according to Guy Carpenter. Property catastrophe buyers without recent losses secured double-digit rate reductions, while reinsurers entered 2026 with expanded capacity and greater flexibility to deploy capital despite ongoing geopolitical and regulatory pressures.
Key points:
-
Capital growth drives pricing pressure: Dedicated reinsurance capital rose 9% in 2025, supporting an estimated 17% return on equity and fueling reinsurers’ appetite for growth at January renewals.
-
Property catastrophe rates fall sharply:Â Buyers with loss-free programs achieved double-digit price reductions as abundant capacity intensified competition across global property catastrophe markets.
-
Lower reinsurer loss participation boosts returns:Â Although insured catastrophe losses reached $121 billion in 2025, reinsurers absorbed just 11% of losses, down from about 20% before the 2023 market reset.
-
Insurance-linked securities capital adds competitive pressure:Â Catastrophe bond issuance reached record levels, with outstanding notional coverage exceeding $58 billion and 15 first-time sponsors entering the market.
-
Structures evolve across lines:Â Clients increasingly adopted quota share and aggregate solutions, while casualty outcomes varied by performance and structure and cyber reinsurance shifted toward more customized, event-driven designs.
|
Check out all things ICT!
|
Enjoying this newsletter? Feel free to share it with your colleagues! Just a reminder: The ICT News to Know is a benefit exclusive to ICT members and we ask you not share outside your organization.
|
|
