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US P&C underwriting income nearly triples in first half of 2026
AM Best said the industry’s combined ratio fell four points to 92.5%, helped by lower catastrophe loss impact versus last year.
The US property and casualty (P&C) industry generated $31.2 billion in net underwriting income in the first half of 2026, nearly tripling the $10.9 billion reported in the same period a year earlier, according to AM Best.
AM Best reported a 3.0% increase in net earned premiums and a 5.1% decline in incurred losses and loss adjustment expenses, with a $4.9 billion increase in dividends to policyholders, largely driven by about $5.0 billion of dividends at State Farm.
The industry’s combined ratio improved by four percentage points to 92.5%. AM Best estimated catastrophe losses contributed 6.2 percentage points to the H1 2026 combined ratio, down from 10.8 percentage points in H1 2025, when January California wildfires weighed heavily.
AM Best also pointed to stronger investment results, including a 12.3% increase in net investment income that, combined with the underwriting gain, nearly doubled pre-tax operating income to $79.1 billion. Industry net income rose 55% year over year to $77.8 billion, helped by an 88.7% jump in net realised capital gains, while surplus increased 7.1% from end of 2025 to $1.3 trillion.