According to The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers (CIAB) qu
arterly survey, commercial property/casualty premiums across a
ll account sizes in the third quarter 2025 rose by 1.6%, as premium i
ncreases in all lines of business were either flat or lower than the last q
uarter when premiums for all accounts increased 3.7%.
“Q3 2025 showed clear soft market conditions across the boar
d,” said CIAB in its report. Lines that saw premiums decrease
in Q3 were business interruption, commercial property, cyber, D
&O, employment practices, and workers compensation.
Survey respondents cited aggressive competition in Q3, notably for
small business. Multiple respondents highlighted carriers’ appetite
for smaller accounts, CIAB reported.
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The cost of cyber insurance fell most out of all lines, down an average of 2.6% in Q3. CIAB said 43% of respondents i
ndicated an increase in cyber underwriting capacity, with about 25% calling the increase “significant.”
Commercial property premiums decreased for the first time in eight years, down an average of 0.2%. The reason cited
most by respondents
was an influx of additional capacity, outweighing demand. New carrie
rs and managing general agents have entered the market as well as retu
rning carriers that left during hard-market conditions. Also, the commercial property reinsurance market h
as improved, which has trickled down as a benefit to insureds.
Even the rate of premiums increases for umbrella coverage decreased in Q3, CIAB said the line had seen average incr
eases of 11.5% in Q2. In Q3, the increase was an average of 5.5%. “It’s
not yet clear what may be influencing this abrupt reversal in the magnitu
de of average premium increases for the line,” CIAB added.