P/C Insurers’ Net Income Up 60%, Combined Ratio at 97.6 for 2013: A.M. Best

A relatively quiet year for catastrophes helped the U.S. property/casualty industry achieved an underwriting profit for the first time in four years, according to A.M. Best. The industry managed its way to a nearly 60 percent increase in net income to $63.2 billion, which helped drive an estimated record year-end surplus of $666.3 billion. The surplus level is “particularly noteworthy given the headwinds that are anticipated in 2014,” A.M. Best said. In a special report, the ratings agency said underwriting results reached their best level since 2007 and the industry’s combined ratio for the year is expected to come in at 97.6.