At Inside P&C’s conference in New York, Tizzio said: “We think that the bumper sticker for both [insurance and reinsurance] underwriting businesses is vigilance in casualty.”
“We're starting to see increasing precedent in jury verdicts and settlements that demonstrate that there's pressure,” he said.
Cyber is another market Axis is watching closely, given new MGA entrants, as well as the recent rise of ransomware activity, with the carrier expecting more “undulation” as a result.
Ransomware claims severity reached a record high in the first half of 2023, according to the most recent Coalition data.
Meanwhile, Tizzio said public D&O might have bottomed out, with Axis seeing “some moderation in pricing on both sides of the business”.
Rates had been declining by double digits over the past few quarters, and some public companies have seen premiums fall as much as 50% to 60% over the past 18 months, according to Risk Placement Services’ 2023 outlook report.
Generally, with its previously announced new strategic direction, Axis is positioning itself to be able to adjust dynamically to changes in a wholesale market that has evolved rapidly since its inception.
“It was the recognition that that wholesale channel will continue to evolve and structurally requires a very strong underwriting background with a diversity of product sense,” said Tizzio of Axis’ specialty expansion.
For example, a decade ago, people might not have thought of environmental business as an E&S product, and the same goes for transactional or marine, he said.
When asked about rising retentions seen in reinsurance renewals this year, Tizzio said Axis has been able to have stability in its agreements so far this year.
“I think that some companies are facing the challenge of rising terms and condition and pricing changes but for Axis, we've been satisfied,” he said.
For example, a recent large property reinsurance purchase was executed without a rise in retention, Tizzio said.
The Bermudian carrier, meanwhile, is not unduly concerned about the potential implementation of a 15% tax rate increase in Bermuda from 2025 under the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s global minimum tax rule.
“It's still on a comparative basis a favorable tax jurisdiction,” Tizzio said. He added that the carrier is confident in having a stake in the discussions as the implementation works its way through the Bermudian system.
