Insurance Rates to Drop

Insurance Rates to Drop

According to an insurance industry group, rates for commercial, auto and homeowners insurance will fall in most areas of the United States this year but will continue to rise in storm-prone coastal areas.

The industry-sponsored Insurance Information Institute said property and casualty insurers had such a good year in 2006, when no hurricanes hit the United States, that they had built up combined reserves by $55.7 billion.

"Insurers took advantage of last year's respite to fix the roof while the sun was shining," institute President Robert Hartwig said in an interview.

The industry now has an overall reserve of $481.5 billion, up from $425.8 billion at the end of 2005, Hartwig said, although he added that reserves were not as big a defense against major disasters as they might appear.

Read more about rates for commercial, auto and homeowners insurance here…  

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