AM Best has released its latest annual report on the surplus lines insurance market (see here). The market study, completed annually, again confirms the surplus lines market’s continued superior financial performance. Some key findings
- Surplus lines premium were $33 billion in 2005, virtually flat from the prior year
- The surplus lines market is growing faster than the commercial lines market. It has increased its share of the commercial lines market from 4% in 1985 to almost 13% in 2005
- With a 93.2 combined ratio, the surplus lines market outperformed the commercial market (at 100.9) by more than 7 points
- The surplus lines market has outperformed the overall industry by an average of approximately 10 points
As it has for many years, Best concludes that:
The surplus lines market maintains financial performance and solvency rates that are at least on par with the admitted market
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