Survey Finds US Commercial Insurance Price Increases Continued in Q2

US commercial insurance prices increased again during the second quarter of this year by an aggregate rate of 6 percent compared to the same quarter in 2021, according to Willis Towers Watson's Commercial Lines Insurance Pricing Survey (CLIPS).

Data for nearly all commercial insurance lines continued to indicate significant price increases in the second quarter, with the exception of workers compensation and directors and officers liability (D&O), according to Willis Towers Watson (WTW).

CLIPS continued to indicate a slight price reduction for workers compensation, similar to this year's first quarter, WTW said. Meanwhile, D&O experienced a small price decrease compared to a moderate price increase during the prior quarter.

The largest price increase in the second quarter continued to be for cyber insurance, the WTW survey found, although the reported volume was much smaller than other lines. When comparing account sizes, reported price changes were all below double digits, including for specialty lines, WTW said.

"The price increases for most lines continued to be strong in the second quarter of 2022," Yi Ling, director, insurance consulting and technology at WTW, said in a statement. "Commercial property saw a larger price increase than prior quarters, in contrast to all other surveyed lines of business. This seems to be consistent with the impact of recent changes in general inflation, particularly with the cost of materials and labor related to property damage repairs."

Willis Towers Watson's CLIPS is a retrospective look at historical changes in commercial property-casualty insurance prices and claims cost inflation.