LEARN INSURANCE

For several years now the Insurance Industry has been pushing through a Soft Market.  Cycles of growth and decline exist within every industry.  In the Insurance world, the soft market is a period marked by low premiums, shrinking profits, high capital base, and fierce competition.  For now, we are not seeing any indication of entering into a Hard Market which normally follows.  From the Insurance Journal, "Abundant capacity coupled with diminished demand keeps downward pressure on rates.  As things now stand, insurance buyers can anticipate another year of favorable insurance prices, although catastrophe claims are always a wild card in the pricing cycle."  A widescale catastrophe can cause underwriting standards to become more rigid which causes premiums and profits to increase while competition loosens.

So what can a soft insurance market do for you?  The soft market is a very beneficial time for consumers because it is ideal for finding the lowest rates and best coverage on most lines of insurance.  This means that now is a great time to be buying insurance!  I faithfully market every client's insurance program about 90 days ahead of renewal time because I realize there is alot of competition out there between agents and also insurance companies and now is a good time to find lower rates and better coverage for you!  The recession has drawn out the soft market and will likely continue to do so as far as I can see.   

I hope this is a beneficial brief look for you of the Insurance industry.  Some agents complain about diminishing volume, heavy competition, and losing business.  I however see this as a great opportunity to save my clients some money and improve their insurance program; and when the market turns I will continue to do my best at saving money for my clients while finding the best coverage available in the marketplace.  Because of these fluctuations, I would rarely if ever allow my clients insurance policy to renew without approaching several markets to be sure we are getting competitive rates and coverage.