US commercial insurance buyers continued to face elevated renewal pricing in April, although the latest figures from the Ivans Index suggest the market is moving further away from the peak of the recent hard cycle.
Average premium renewal rates increased across all major commercial lines except workers' compensation, which again posted a decline, according to Ivans. On a month-over-month basis, rate movements were mixed, with modest rises in some classes offset by softening in others.
For the month of April, commercial auto recorded an average increase of 5.24%, up from 5.05% in March. Business owner’s policy (BOP) rose 6.43%, down slightly from 6.51% at the end of March. General liability averaged 5.70%, down from 6.64% in March, marking one of the larger month‑to‑month easing moves.
Commercial property remained broadly stable at elevated levels, coming in at 6.24% compared with 6.23% in March. Umbrella business continued to see the steepest increases of any major line, at 8.27%, although this was down from 8.76% the previous month.
Workers’ compensation stayed in negative territory at -1.35%, an improvement from -1.60% in March but still indicating average rate reductions at renewal.
Taken together, the figures show a market that is still delivering firm pricing in most classes, but with clear signs that upward momentum is slowing in several casualty lines.
April’s readings are consistent with a gradual normalization after several years of broad‑based hardening driven by loss‑cost inflation, social inflation in liability lines, and elevated catastrophe losses in property.
General liability and umbrella continue to attract sizable rate increases, reflecting concerns over severity trends and large jury awards, but the month‑over‑month easing suggests competitive pressure is building, particularly on better‑performing accounts. BOP’s small decline points in the same direction for smaller commercial risks.
Commercial auto and commercial property, by contrast, both ticked up in April. Auto underwriters remain wary of parts and labor inflation as well as large‑loss frequency, while property insurers continue to manage exposure to secondary perils, supply‑chain‑driven repair costs, and reinsurance costs. Even a modest increase in these classes signals that capacity providers are not yet ready to loosen terms across the board.
Overall, the market appears to be shifting from a uniformly hard phase to a more segmented environment in which pricing is driven by class, geography, and individual risk quality.
Workers’ compensation again diverged from the rest of the market, with average renewal rates decreasing 1.35% despite the slight month‑over‑month firming. That continues a multiyear pattern of negative or flat rate movements in the line.
The widening gap between workers’ comp and other casualty lines also raises questions about cross‑line portfolio management, with some insurers using strong workers’ comp performance to support growth in more volatile segments.
With rate increases moderating in key casualty lines but input costs — from reinsurance to claims inflation — still elevated, the scope to trade price for volume is limited. Underwriters are likely to differentiate more sharply between well‑managed and poorly performing risks, leaning more on data and analytics to maintain margins.
Brokers can expect more room to negotiate on accounts with strong loss histories, especially in general liability, BOP, and umbrella, while still facing tougher conversations on property‑heavy schedules and auto fleets with adverse experience.
Continued softening in workers’ comp provides a useful lever in overall program discussions, but clients are unlikely to see meaningful relief on total spend without demonstrable improvements in their risk profile
