Reinsurance broker Guy Carpenter’s U.S. Property Catastrophe Rate-On-Line (ROL) Index is now up by just 1.2% in 2024, reflecting a deceleration of rate increases at the mid-year renewals following the highs of last year.
While still up by 1.2% after the July renewals, the generally flat to slightly down rate environment at the mid-year renewals is clear, as this index was up by 5.4% at the January 1st, 2024, renewals.
This is quite the dip from the 35% increase seen in 2023, but while property catastrophe reinsurance pricing appears to have peaked, it’s still a positive and profitable underwriting environment for global reinsurers.
“While pricing came down on a risk-adjusted basis, the flattish index value reflects stable retentions driving greater catastrophe exposure into programs,” says Guy Carpenter. “Dollars spent increased on average but not quite to the same degree as exposure.”
The reinsurance broker’s ROL Index, which can be viewed below, is a measure of the change in dollars paid for coverage year-on-year on a consistent program base. An interactive version of the Index is available on our sister site, Artemis, by clicking on the image.
It will be interesting to see where Guy Carpenter’s U.S. property cat ROL Index is at year-end and heading into the January 2025 reinsurance renewals. While the Index is down at the mid-year, the data shows that it is still up by a stark 107% since the low of the soft market in 2017.
