USI in the News
The commercial insurance market for strike, riot and civil commotion coverage has undergone a lot of change in recent years due to rising protests and political violence, creating increased interest among policyholders. USI’s National Property Practice Leader, Jeff Buyze, recently caught up with Business Insurance to discuss the latest trends in civil disorder insurance coverage. During the interview, Buyze shared that insureds are asking more about strike, riot and civil commotion coverage, in some cases because they’ve had instances of potential gaps or shortfalls in coverage. Read the full article.
For the fifth consecutive year, USI has been named a ‘Best of the Best’ employer for women in the insurance industry by Professional WOMAN’s Magazine (PWM). PWM’s annual ‘Best of the Best’ program is designed to recognize leading U.S. organizations actively engaged in the advancement of multicultural women in all aspects of business and employment to ensure equal opportunity. Read more.
USI Affinity today announced that its travel insurance division, USI Affinity Travel Insurance Services, has been named to Forbes Advisor’s annual list of the Best Travel Insurance Companies for the fourth year in a row. USI Affinity received a top ranking on this year’s list based on policy benefits and available coverage options most important to travelers. In its evaluation, Forbes Advisor scored 53 policies to identify the best travel insurance plans using data provided by Squaremouth, a travel insurance comparison provider.
The 2023 rankings were based on each plan’s score for benefits and average prices for various trips and traveler profiles. The benefits that were scored included medical expenses, medical evacuation, Covid-related medical coverage, “Cancel For Any Reason” upgrade, baggage delay required waiting time, baggage reimbursement, hurricane and weather coverage requirements, “Interruption For Any Reason” upgrade, pre-existing medical condition exclusion waiver, travel delay required waiting time and trip interruption.
“USI Affinity is proud to once again be recognized by Forbes Advisor for the fourth year in a row, especially this year as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Travel Insurance Services,” stated USI Affinity’s Travel Insurance Division Leader Daria Porreca. “Over the last three years, we have worked diligently to adapt and respond to changing regulations while meeting the evolving needs of travelers. In addition, our longstanding relationships with our carrier partners have allowed us to develop a suite of products that can benefit a variety of traveler profiles. Whether we’re serving travel suppliers, business accounts or individual travelers, we strive to provide travel insurance solutions that enable our customers to travel with greater protection and peace of mind. We look forward to continued growth, strong partnerships and opportunities to serve our current and future customers in 2023 and beyond.”
USI Affinity Travel Insurance Services also had a plan featured on Forbes Advisor’s list of Best Covid-19 Travel Insurance for 2023.
Forbes Advisor is a trusted destination for unbiased money and business advice, news and reviews, dedicated to helping consumers make smart decisions and choose the right products with ease. To view Forbes Advisor’s complete list of the Best Travel Insurance Companies of 2023, visit their rankings page.
About USI Affinity
For over 75 years, USI Affinity has developed, marketed and administered programs to deliver unique advantages in insurance coverage, price and service. USI Affinity markets and administers insurance programs for over 440 organizations nationwide, representing more than 22 million association, union and alumni members. USI Affinity is a division of USI Insurance Services. For more information about USI Affinity, please visit www.usiaffinity.com.
USI’s National Aviation Practice Leader, James Van Meter, will join an expert panel to discuss the state of the aviation insurance market at this year’s Alaska Air Carriers Association annual conference taking place March 1-3 in Anchorage. During the session, panelists will explore topics such as aircraft accident trends in Alaska, market capacity, global events impacting the marketplace, trends in the litigation environment, and how to strategically plan for renewals. Learn more.
USI’s Head of Industry Verticals & National Construction Practice Leader, Danette Beck, will join an expert panel to discuss some of the key areas of concern for the construction industry, such as supply chain concerns, price escalation, market uncertainty, and more, at this year’s National Associated General Contractors of America (AGC)Annual Convention in Las Vegas on Wednesday, March 15, at 11 a.m. (PST). Learn more.
USI’s National Property Practice Leader, Jeff Buyze, and National International Specialty Group Practice Leader, John Scales, recently caught up with Business Insurance to discuss the impact of worldwide events, such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the increase in mass shooting events in the U.S., on the political violence and terrorism insurance markets, along with what it means for policyholders. “Policies are highly customizable, and businesses can choose which locations coverage applies to,” Buyze shared. “Businesses need to understand their risks and vulnerabilities and identify appropriate limits.” Read the full article.
In recent interviews with Business Insurance, USI’s National Executive & Professional Risk Solutions Practice Leader, Andy Doherty, discussed the continuing decline in directors and officers (D&O) liability insurance rates despite the growing uncertainty of both the future macro-economic environment – rising inflation, interest rate increases, increased bankruptcies, and the very specific emerging risks of cyber breaches, ESG-related litigation, cryptocurrency volatility and a significant drop off in Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) IPOs. “The concern is about whether we are going to have a rough economic year in 2023,” Doherty emphasized during the interview, adding, “Yet it feels like a period of stability at this point.” Read the full article.
USI’s National Cyber Practice Leader, Nadia Hoyte, will join an expert panel to discuss Cloud Disruption at this year’s NetDiligence® Cyber Risk Summit, taking place in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, February 20-21. During the session, panelists will explore topics such as business interruption cloud losses, negotiating proactively on coverage, strategies to contain losses, and much more. Learn more.
For the fourth year in a row, USI is proud to be recognized as a Best of the Best employer by Black EOE Journal, a leading African American business and career publication. The Best of the Best program recognizes leading insurance companies and their efforts to promote the advancement of African Americans in all aspects of business and employment to ensure equal opportunity. Each year, Black EOE Journal polls hundreds of Fortune 1000 companies for its Best of the Best evaluations, providing non-biased results that are valuable resources for job-seekers, business owners, students, consumers, senior management, business associations, employment agencies and consumer groups. Read more.
Each year, Insurance Business America (IBA)’s “5-Star DE&I Awards” recognize leading U.S.-based insurance companies for their work to foster impactful, forward-looking diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) programs. USI was among only 17 insurance organizations to receive this honor for 2023 in recognition of our ongoing efforts to build an increasingly diverse, equitable and inclusive culture at USI through our I’m With U DE&I program. Commenting on the award, USI’s Chief Human Resources Officer & I’m With U Executive Sponsor, Kim Van Orman, shared: “The launch of our I’m With U DE&I program in June 2020 marked a transformational journey for USI and our people. Among many things, I’m With U represents our shared commitment to building our collective understanding, skills and awareness in support of our employees, clients and local communities. I want to congratulate our employees on this outstanding achievement and thank them for their continued contributions to this inspiring program.” Learn more.
Andy Doherty, USI’s national executive & professional risk solutions practice leader, was recently interviewed by Business Insurance to discuss the latest trends in the D&O insurance market. According to the article, D&O liability insurance policyholders continued to see rate decreases during recent January 1, 2023, renewals, fueled by significant capacity increases and increased competition. Read the article.
USI’s National Property Practice Leader, Jeff Buyze, recently met with Business Insurance to discuss the rising property insurance rates and market conditions for 2023. Commenting on the current property insurance market, Buyze shared: “Capacity is the biggest challenge. When an incumbent carrier pulls back in the current line that they're providing – let's say they were providing $100 million the year before, and now they can only provide, say, $5 million or $10 million – that's where we're seeing the largest rate increases, and the most difficult renewals.” Read the article.
Key findings from USI’s 2023 Employee Benefits Market Outlook Report were recently profiled in a new PLANSPONSOR article, which highlights the various challenges employers will be contending with in 2023, including strategies employers can adopt to reduce the impact of rising healthcare costs. Read the article.
Business Insurance recently reported on the key takeaways from USI’s 2023 Commercial Property & Casualty Market Outlook Report. This year’s report once again provided timely insights on the latest market trends impacting P&C insurance buyers and reviewed upcoming challenges and opportunities for buyers in the new year. Read the article.