US Property-Casualty Industry Posts 9-Month Net Underwriting Gain

The US property-casualty insurance industry posted a $4.1 billion net underwriting gain through the first 9 months of 2024, according to a new report from AM Best.

The industry results over the year's first 3 quarters represented a significant improvement from the $32.1 billion loss it posted over the same period last year, Best said in its report First Look: Nine-Month 2024 US Property/Casualty Financial Results.

Data in the report is derived from companies whose 9-month interim period statutory statements were received as of November 25, Best said, and represent an estimated 98 percent of total industry net written premiums.

The Best report said that the US property-casualty industry's 9-month underwriting gain, along with a 22.1 percent increase in earned net investment income, fueled a 261.7 percent increase in the industry's pretax operating income to $65.9 billion.

The US property-casualty industry's combined ratio improved to 97.9 percent through this year's first 9 months, a 5.8 percentage-point improvement from the same period last year, Best said. Catastrophe losses accounted for an estimated 8.8 percentage points on the 2024 combined ratio over the first 3 quarters, down from 10.0 percentage points over the first 9 months of 2023, according to the rating agency.

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