Dive Brief:
- Commercial auto insurance increased 8.8% sequentially, according to a quarterly report from The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers.
- That’s not as intense as the 10.4% sequential increase that took place in Q1, but it still outpaced nearly all other types of insurance products.
- “Overall, the average increase in premiums across all the major lines of business (commercial auto, commercial property, general liability, umbrella, and workers compensation) was 4.9% in Q2 2025, the same as last quarter,” the report said.
Dive Insight:
While some commercial auto premiums remained unchanged in Q2, others increased by as much as 20% to 29%, according to the report.
The Northeast appeared to have less drastic upticks compared to other parts of the country, based on the report’s survey responses.
The only product category that outpaced commercial auto was the extra protection category of umbrella policies.
“Industry experts attributed this increase to legal system abuse, as in previous quarters,” the report said, noting a rise in nuclear verdicts (those involving over $10 million in damages) and thermonuclear verdicts (more than $100 million in damages).
Werner Enterprises recently appeared to be part of that mix until a Texas Supreme Court verdict reversed damages in June regarding a fatal 2014 crash.
Rising costs are becoming increasingly common. The American Transportation Research Institute recently noted that trucking insurance premiums were outpacing other rising costs: Carriers reported insurance premium costs in Q1 were up 5.8% on average.
Despite safety improvements, potentially pricey verdicts and settlements continue to pressure margins. In a July report, ATRI predicted that carrier insurance costs are “likely to continue to increase in 2025 at a greater rate than in 2024.”
