Brokers anticipate some rises in commercial insurance rates in the June renewals, but they are not expected to be as high as recent years and probably won’t affect all classes, says National Insurance Brokers Association (NIBA) CEO Noel Pettersen. Reporting on the initial reactions of brokers, he says some rate increases in the liability classes are expected, but not the sort of increases experienced over the past five or six years.

Commenting on the early findings of an ongoing NIBA study on the renewals, he said some brokers are predicting premiums in other classes of commercial insurance will plateau or even fall as increasing capital availability leads to greater competition.

“Overall, capacity is being restored, investment markets are recovering and there is an upswing in the global economy. But insurance companies around the world still have many challenges to face, from the rising cost of liability claims to competing for capital with other financial services industries.”

Insurance-buyers should not expect premiums to fall to the levels experienced through the 1990s, he said. “The days of hopelessly underpriced premiums are, hopefully, gone.”