After years of volatility, the US small business property insurance market is beginning to stabilise, with increased capacity in constrained areas creating more options for coastal risks and fostering a competitive landscape, according to a new report from Amwins Access.

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) has finalised a climate-adjusted reporting requirement aimed at providing regulators with a clearer view of insurers’ climate-related exposures.

Widespread concerns over the accuracy of Property Claim Services’ estimate for Hurricane Milton are leading to delayed renewal signings compared with past Decembers, according to KBW analyst Meyer Shields.

Perils’ estimate of insured losses from September’s flooding in Central Europe has passed the €2bn threshold in its latest market update.

Amid peak activity for firm order terms and signings of 1.1 reinsurance renewals, strong reinsurer demand for property cat appears to be driving softening at the upper end of expectations, while recent tough talk on US casualty is not translating to meaningful reductions in ceding commissions.

KBW’s Meyer Shields has provided a “largely positive” outlook for specialty and standard commercial insurers, reflecting the historical pattern of peak commercial underwriting margins coming several years after peak pricing increases.

With this year’s supercharged storm season officially over, David Wilkie, senior research analyst in MS Amlin’s exposure management team, unpicks the key takeaways for the industry.

Shares in the Progressive Corporation were trading up 4 percent Friday after the US personal lines giant reported an 18 percent increase in net written premiums to $5.56bn in November and improved its combined ratio by 5.5 points to 85.6 percent.

The CEO of WR Berkley expects property catastrophe pricing to drop 5 to 15 percent at the 1.1 renewals, which he suggested will lead to downward pressure on the primary market.

Windstorm Darragh, which hit western Europe between 6 and 8 December, is expected to generate economic loss in the tens of millions, according to Aon's latest weekly cat report.

MGA Helix's recently launched commercial property excess facility on its US platform will write business on the A+ XV E&S paper of PartnerRe, Program Manager can reveal.

The board of the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association has approved a $485mn budget line item for ceded reinsurance and catastrophe bond spend for next year, up 22 percent from the figure in 2024.

Tropical Storm Risk has said 2025 Atlantic hurricane season activity will likely be close to the 30-year norm in its December extended range forecast.

Bermuda-based MGA Helix has officially unveiled its new Greg Butler-led US platform with the launch of a US commercial property excess facility offering $10mn of limit per risk on A+ XV E&S paper.

The impact of Storm Darragh, which hit western England and Wales over the weekend, serves as "another wake-up call" for (re)insurers over the escalating losses from extreme weather events, according to Swiss Re's Jason Richards.