According to RiskScan 2026, a cross-market research study by the Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I) and Munich Re US, cyber incidents, economic pressures, and artificial intelligence have emerged as the top concerns across five key insurance market segments, underscoring the growing interconnectedness of modern risk.
For the 2026 edition, Munich Re US and Triple-I commissioned independent market research firm RTi Research to conduct an online survey of more than 1,700 respondents.
The study explored shifting risk perceptions and increasingly interconnected exposures across the U.S. and U.K. insurance markets, with RiskScan 2026 highlighting a broad convergence of cyber, economic, technological, and catastrophe risks.
RiskScan 2026 observed that today’s digital landscape features an increasing frequency and complexity of cyber threats, from companies vulnerable to customer data breaches to smart homes that are interconnected and exposed to potential attacks.
“We see cyber losses on the rise and becoming more costly for the insurance industry, which underlines the value of cyber coverage. Cyber continues to be a threat that is difficult for businesses and individuals to predict and continues to pose a significant risk to all market segments,” the research report added.
Meanwhile, fueled by insurance professionals and consumer responses, the increasing frequency and severity of natural catastrophes also ranked among the top three insurance risks.
“Although spared from hurricane landfalls, 2025 was the costliest claims year to date for non-peak perils: wildfires, flooding, and severe thunderstorms,” the report explained.
At the same time, non-peak (secondary) catastrophe perils—including floods, severe storms, winter weather and wildfires—are now widely viewed, according to the report, as frequent, high-impact risks, challenging traditional assumptions about catastrophe exposure and diversification.
The risk of business interruption is a universal concern for business and insurance professionals, with various threats such as cyberattacks, natural disasters, labour strikes, and geopolitical conflicts all capable of causing substantial operational disruption. Understandably, it was not a top concern for consumers, according to the report.
AI ranked as the most impactful emerging technology, reflecting both its rapid adoption and growing concerns around operational, regulatory, liability and systemic risks, the research found.
Despite rising awareness, persistent protection gaps remain for flood and cyber insurance among businesses and insurance professionals alike, the report noted.
Finally, growing recognition of legal system abuse as a driver of rising P/C insurance costs signals broader awareness of structural pressures affecting affordability and long-term market stability, according to the research.
Taken together, these findings from RiskScan 2026 highlight how modern risk is increasingly systemic rather than isolated. The interconnected nature of today’s threat landscape is pushing organisations toward more proactive and integrated approaches to risk management, including supply chain diversification, geopolitical intelligence, and more frequent continuity planning updates to strengthen resilience.
Marcus Winter, president and CEO, North America (P&C Re), Munich Re US, commented, “As insurance professionals, we are committed to driving positive change by helping clients better understand, mitigate and manage today’s increasingly complex risks, from cyber incidents and business interruption to natural catastrophes and emerging AI exposures.
“The findings also reinforce the critical role insurance plays in helping communities recover after loss, promoting long-term financial stability and strengthening resilience.”
Michel Léonard, Ph.D., CBE, chief economist and data scientist, Triple-I, said, “Today’s risk environment is being shaped not only by catastrophe and cyber exposures, but also by the interaction between economic inflation, geopolitical uncertainty, supply chain pressures and rising legal costs.
“The data shows economic conditions are increasingly acting as a multiplier of insurance risk, affecting affordability, claims severity, capital allocation and long-term market stability across the insurance value chain.”
Sean Kevelighan, CEO, Triple-I, noted, “The survey findings make clear that recognising risk is only the first step. As flood, cyber and other interconnected exposures continue to evolve, the industry has an important opportunity to strengthen public understanding, close protection gaps, and work collaboratively with consumers, policymakers, businesses, and communities to better predict, prepare and prevent ever-increasing risks.”
Broad recognition of insurance’s societal value underscores the importance of collaboration among insurers, reinsurers, industry organisations, policymakers and risk management leaders to address emerging exposures, improve public understanding of risk and advance solutions for resilience and economic stability.
Kerri Hamm, Head of Cyber Underwriting, Client Solutions, and Business Development, Munich Re US, concluded, “RiskScan 2026 highlights the insurance industry’s need to accelerate development in the areas that matter most to P&C clients and their policyholders.
“Insurers are enhancing their cyber offerings, advancing new models for emerging nonpeak perils, and developing forward-thinking products designed to help businesses navigate evolving AI-related exposures.”
