2015 Terrorism Risk Insurance Report

Terrorism insurance take-up rates dropped off toward the end of 2014, due to the anxiety stemming from the unexpected expiration of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act (TRIPRA). Congress quickly authorized a slightly amended version of the law in January 2015 and buyers of terrorism insurance since have generally experienced a favorable rate environment, a trend that is expected to continue, barring unforeseen events or market changes.

Our “2015 Terrorism Risk Insurance Report” analyzes terrorism risk insurance pricing and take-up rates, breaking down the data by company size, industry, and region.

Among the key findings from the report:

• Terrorism insurance take-up rates have remained relatively stable since 2009, although they decreased slightly in 2014 as a result of the anxiety surrounding TRIPRA at the end of 2014.
• Underwriters continue to scrutinize employee concentration exposures, highlighting the importance of accurate data and risk differentiation, particularly for workers’ compensation exposures.
• Organizations that purchased terrorism coverage in the first half of 2015 typically saw competitive rates offered by standalone property terrorism insurers.
• Among industry sectors, education organizations had the highest take-up rate for terrorism insurance in 2014.

The report also covers:

• Insurance market capacity among the major carriers.
• The role of political violence coverage in mitigating exposures not covered by terrorism policies.
• Benefits of using captives to secure terrorism coverage under TRIPRA.
• Potential applicability of terrorism coverage under standard fire policy statutes
• Applicability of insurance coverage for cyber-attacks.
• Terrorism reinsurance markets.