Insurance rate hikes accelerate in most lines

Insurance premium renewal rates climbed in October in five out of six lines of coverage tracked by Ivans Insurance Services, a unit of Applied Systems Inc.

Commercial property insurance rates increased the most, rising by an average 10.4% last month, compared with 9.9% in September.

In other lines, business owners policy rates increased 8.8%, compared with 7.6% in the prior month; commercial auto was up 8.5%, compared with 7.4%; umbrella rates were up 6.2%, compared with 5.2%; and general liability rates rose 5.7%, compared with 5.3%.

The only major line to see a decrease was workers compensation, where rates fell 1.3%, a slight slowdown from the 1.4% decrease in September.

The analysis is based on information from 38,000 agencies and 600 insurers, Ivans said in a statement.