The US property insurance market could be on shaky ground, a report by Aon suggests.
Despite 2004 seeing the highest quarterly insured losses ever in the US, buyers of US property insurance should expect to see moderate decreases in the 2005 renewal season, Aon's report ‘The calm after the storm' said.
It also indicated that the uncertainty around the reauthorisation of Terrorism Risk Insurance Act could serve to destabilise the property insurance market.
The trend towards a more technical underwriting approach has enabled the insurance industry to withstand massive losses, the report said.
In addition, a moderate expansion of market capacity in 2004 has led to underwriters competing for business which resulted in premium deductions of around 10% for more than 50% of buyers surveyed for Aon's report.