Texas sees significant commercial auto rate hikes in March

• This analysis by S&P Global Market Intelligence is limited to publicly available rate filings submitted to state insurance regulators.
• Rate filing information is sourced from the System for Electronic Rate and Form Filing documents.
• States employ a variety of rate regulation mechanisms such as prior approval, modified prior approval, file and use, and use and file. Form filing laws govern the type of policy form regulation used by the state and may not require explicit approval by state regulators prior to using the new rate.
• This analysis is based on when a rate filing is "disposed" by the state regulator and does not take into account when the new rate became effective for new and renewal business. In some instances, a new rate has been in effect prior to the particular month the filing has been "disposed" by the regulator.

The 10 most-impactful commercial auto rate increases disposed in March were all in Texas, according to an S&P Global Market Intelligence analysis.

The Lone Star State saw 27 commercial auto rate hikes disposed during the month, which could lead to an additional $53.2 million in premiums written across the industry. That calculated increase is the largest for any single state in March.

Travelers, CNA log largest premium increases

The Travelers Cos. Inc. obtained 10 rate-hike approvals across four states in March, and was listed six times in the list of the top 10 largest increases. Travelers may see aggregate positive premium impact of about $30 million from those increases. About 98% of the estimated premium increase looks to come from rate hikes in Texas.

CNA Financial Corporation is expected to see the second-largest cumulative premium increase at $16.5 million, thanks to 29 rate-hike requests approved during the month. More than 82% is expected to result from six rate hikes disposed by Texas regulators.

The Texas rate hikes for both Travelers and CNA will impact policyholders starting July 1, for both new and renewal business.

Westfield Insurance tops rate decrease chart

At the other end of the spectrum, Ohio Farmers Insurance Co. subsidiary Westfield National Insurance Co. received regulatory approval for the most-significant rate decrease in March. The 5% rate cut could lower the group's total premiums by roughly $90,000. That reduction will affect nearly 100 policyholders in Maryland.