After Seven Consecutive Years of Increases, Global Commercial Insurance Rates Have Now Declined for Six Consecutive Quarters

Global commercial insurance rates remain in a downward cycle.

The international insurance brokerage giant Marsh recently released its latest global insurance market rate report, showing that in Q4 2025, global commercial insurance rates decreased by another 4%. After seven years of increases, this indicator has now declined for six consecutive quarters.

Marsh states that this downward trend is driven by a significant increase in insurers’ underwriting capacity, supported by growth in reinsurance business and new insurance companies entering the market, intensifying competition. Overall, this has resulted in more favorable terms and broader coverage options for commercial insurance clients.

[Image: Global Commercial Insurance Rate Trends (Source: Marsh)]

Regionally, except for the U.S., where rates fell 1% in Q3 2024 and remained flat in Q4, all other regions experienced rate declines. The Pacific region saw the largest decrease at 12%, while Asia’s commercial insurance rates fell 5% in Q4, consistent with the previous quarter. In Asia, aside from Vietnam and Japan, which saw rates rise 15% and 1% respectively, other countries or regions experienced declines. Mainland China’s commercial insurance rates in Q4 dipped slightly by 1%, remaining flat from Q3.

By line of business, accident insurance was one of the few commercial lines to see rate increases in Q4 2025. Marsh data shows global accident insurance rates rose 4% in that quarter, up from 3% in Q3.

Despite intense competition among insurers leading to generally declining rates in most regions, the U.S. saw a 9% increase in accident insurance rates in Q4. Marsh attributes this mainly to sustained high claims costs and large jury verdicts, especially in the excess accident insurance sector. Although new underwriting capacity has entered the excess accident market, demand still exceeds supply.

In property insurance, global rates fell 9% in Q4, with Asia experiencing a 5% decrease. Marsh notes that with ample underwriting capacity, competition among insurers has intensified, leading to increased use of long-term agreements (LTA), offering lower claims bonuses and multi-year discounts. As a result, some clients have seen improvements in sub-limits, deductibles, and other policy restrictions.

Meanwhile, rates for financial lines and professional liability insurance continued to decline. Except for flat rates in the U.S., all other regions saw decreases in Q4. The previous quarters’ volatile rate swings have been replaced by more stable declines, reflecting a more balanced market landscape.

As client demand rises and cybersecurity incidents become more frequent, the cyber insurance market continues to expand. “More clients are purchasing cyber coverage for the first time or increasing their existing limits. Insurers and their capital providers are increasing investments to cope with escalating risks, supporting market growth. The influx of underwriting capacity has intensified competition, leading to rate declines across regions,” Marsh states. In Q4, global cyber insurance rates fell 7%, with Asia experiencing a 10% decrease.

Marsh predicts that competition among insurers will intensify further, with declining reinsurance costs being one of the key drivers. Unless there are extreme catastrophic losses or a series of major claims events, global rates are likely to continue trending downward.

(This article is from First Financial)