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Major Carrier Guides & Industry Reports: Where to Find Authoritative Commercial Insurance Data

An ultimate, U.S.-focused guide for business buyers, brokers, risk managers and procurement teams who need reliable commercial-lines intelligence — market share, rate filings, loss-costs, carrier financial strength, claims trends, benchmarking and regulatory filings. This guide explains which primary data sources matter, where to access them (free vs. paid), practical examples and workflows you can use today to research carriers and commercial insurance markets.

Table of contents

  • Why “authoritative” commercial-insurance data matters
  • What types of data buyers and brokers actually need
  • Primary national sources (NAIC, NCCI, SERFF, BLS, AM Best, J.D. Power)
  • Carrier-published guides and where to find them (examples from Chubb, The Hartford and others)
  • Paid research platforms and specialty datasets
  • How to combine sources into a practical due‑diligence workflow (checklist + sample queries)
  • Evaluating authority, timeliness and representativeness
  • Quick-reference comparison table
  • Action plan: 30/60/90 day roadmap for procurement & RFP teams
  • Further reading & curated references (external) — 5 authoritative links
  • Related resource pages (internal links)

Why “authoritative” commercial-insurance data matters

If you buy commercial coverage, negotiate renewals, design an RFP, or advise clients, the difference between a guess and a sourced number can cost millions: wrong assumptions on market capacity, misread rate trends, or mis-assigning carrier financial strength increase price, coverage gaps and operational risk. Use authoritative data to:

  • Validate premium and rate-change expectations before you negotiate.
  • Benchmark carrier performance (loss ratios, combined ratios, claims handling).
  • Confirm solvency and surplus trends before awarding large placements.
  • Find state-specific filing history, forms and regulator actions that affect coverage wording.

Key authoritative repositories for these tasks are the NAIC (financial & statutory reporting), NCCI (workers’ comp pricing and loss-costs), state SERFF pages (rate/form filings), the BLS (workplace injury incidence) and recognized market research firms (AM Best, J.D. Power). (content.naic.org)

What types of commercial-insurance data buyers and brokers actually need

Different roles and decisions require different datasets. Below are the most common use cases and the data you’ll want to consult.

  • Underwriting / Pricing decisions

    • Insurer loss ratios, combined ratios, reserve development (NAIC statutory statements).
    • Market-level loss-cost trends and manual changes (NCCI for workers’ comp).
    • Rate filings & supporting actuarial exhibits (state SERFF pages). (content.naic.org)

  • Carrier selection & financial due diligence

    • NAIC company profiles, statutory filings, surplus/capital, reinsurance schedules (NAIC InsData / company annual statements). (content.naic.org)

  • Claims & loss-control strategy

    • Industry injury rates and trends (BLS SOII & CFOI), carrier loss-cost circulars, and carrier risk-control resources. (bls.gov)

  • RFPs, procurement and market capacity

    • Market share & premium writings by carrier (industry reports / S&P / Statista / AM Best).
    • E&S market activity and capacity shifts (AM Best and trade press). (businesswire.com)

  • Regulatory & compliance work

    • State bulletins, approval orders and public rate/form filings (SERFF & state insurance departments). (serff.com)

Primary national sources — what they are and how to use them

1) NAIC (National Association of Insurance Commissioners) — financial statements, InsData and public company reports

What it contains

  • Company annual & quarterly statutory financial statements (admitted assets, surplus, underwriting income, loss reserves), model laws and consumer info.
    How to use it
  • Download company annual statements and financial supplements to validate carrier solvency, surplus trends and reinsurance schedules before large writes.
    Notes on access & cost
  • NAIC’s InsData distributes PDF statements and machine-readable datasets; some datasets are behind account paywalls or pay-per-download. (content.naic.org)

Practical tip: When comparing two carriers for a mid‑market placement, pull the last five annual statements and calculate trends in surplus, net earned premium, and combined ratio changes.

2) SERFF (System for Electronic Rate & Form Filing) — state-level rate and form filings

What it contains

  • Rate and form filings submitted by carriers and advisory organizations (some states post public filings on SERFF Filing Access or their own filing portals).
    How to use it
  • Look up the state filing history for a product (BOP, commercial auto, workers’ comp) to confirm rate-change timelines and supporting actuarial exhibits. Use SERFF Filing Access to find participating states that post public filings. (serff.com)

Practical tip: If you expect a rate decrease/increase in a particular state, first check SERFF and then the state DOI approval orders for the effective dates and actuarial support.

3) NCCI (National Council on Compensation Insurance) — workers’ compensation loss‑costs, classification, trend analytics

What it contains

  • Approved voluntary loss-cost filings, classification manuals, circulars, state- and industry-level frequency/severity trends, WorkComp Workstation tools and Data Now products. NCCI prepares loss-cost filings used by many states. (ncci.com)

How to use it

  • For any employer or multi-state program, obtain state-specific loss-cost trends and the latest NCCI filing supplements to estimate premium impact and to understand classification relativity changes.

4) BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) — workplace injury rates and occupational data

What it contains

  • SOII (Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses), CFOI (Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries), incidence rates by industry and occupation, and trend dashboards.
    How to use it
  • Use BLS to benchmark claim frequency by NAICS code before underwriting and to calculate experience‑rating expectations for workers’ compensation. (bls.gov)

5) AM Best, S&P, Moody’s, J.D. Power — market research, credit ratings, customer satisfaction studies

What they contain

  • AM Best: insurer credit ratings, Best’s underwriting reports, market segment outlooks and company research.
  • S&P/Moody’s/Fitch: market and credit analysis (paid).
  • J.D. Power: Customer satisfaction and small‑commercial studies (industry reputation, retention drivers).
    How to use it
  • Combine AM Best credit metrics with NAIC statutory filings to get a fuller picture of carrier strength and market reputation. Use J.D. Power for customer experience benchmarking. (businesswire.com)

Major carrier guides, research hubs and example pages (how carriers publish their own intelligence)

Large commercial carriers publish market insights, industry research and product pages that are useful for buyers and brokers. Carrier content can include loss‑control whitepapers, emerging-risk alerts, underwriting appetite guides and industry benchmarking.

Examples (direct publisher resources):

  • Chubb — Middle Market Indicator and risk-management resources; industry research pages and risk-consulting insights are published on Chubb’s site. Use these pages to understand appetite and product innovations. (chubb.com)
  • The Hartford — Global Insights Center, small commercial digital capability reports and product guides; useful for small & midsize commercial market research. (newsroom.thehartford.com)
  • Many carriers (AIG, Travelers, Liberty Mutual, Zurich, Travelers, CNA) maintain similar insight hubs — search carrier + “insights”, “risk control” or “industry reports” to find current thought leadership and practical loss-control resources.

How to use carrier resources

  • Appetite & product fit: Carrier “who we serve” pages help you pre‑screen by industry and limits.
  • Risk-control content: Use carrier engineering and risk-control guides to reduce frequency and severity — good supporting evidence in renewal negotiations.
  • Claims & digital servicing announcements: Track digital COI, certificates and claims portal capability — these items affect operational efficiency and cost for your client. (newsroom.thehartford.com)

Caveat: Carrier marketing can be selective. Always triangulate claims or “industry-first” statements with NAIC/AM Best financials or independent publications.

Paid platforms and specialty datasets — when to invest

Paid data services are often required for scale, automation and historical time series.

  • AM Best (paid+) — in-depth underwriting reports and industry outlooks; strong for credit/ratings and underwriting-level analysis. (businesswire.com)
  • S&P Global Market Intelligence (paid) — enterprise financials, market share and M&A data.
  • Verisk, RMS, AIR (catastrophe models & exposure management) — necessary if your book has material catastrophe exposure.
  • NCCI WorkComp Workstation (subscription) — state-level loss-cost trend extracts, claims benchmarking tools. (ncci.com)
  • NAIC data feeds / InsData (subscription) — machine-readable financial data for analytic work. (content.naic.org)

When to buy:

  • You need consolidated historical time series, automation (APIs) or regulatory submissions at scale.
  • You're a broker with multiple carrier comparison workflows and need programmatic access.
  • You manage catastrophe or industry-specific risk concentrations.

Putting it together — practical workflows, checklists and sample queries

Below are repeatable workflows for common business tasks.

Workflow A — Before a major RFP (30–60–90 minute research tasks)

  1. Quick financial screen (15–20 minutes)
    • Pull NAIC company overview and five-year annual statements for each target carrier. Check admitted assets, surplus and combined ratio trends. (NAIC InsData). (content.naic.org)
  2. Market & rate check (15–30 minutes)
    • Search SERFF for recent rate & form filings in the state(s) of placement for the product lines you’ll request quotes for (commercial auto, BOP, workers’ comp). (serff.com)
  3. Workers’ comp specifics (if applicable) (15–30 minutes)
    • Pull NCCI state loss-cost supplements and circulars for the states in scope; check for classification changes. (ncci.com)
  4. Claims & safety benchmark (10–20 minutes)
    • Use BLS SOII to confirm industry injury frequency by NAICS code; use carrier risk-control resources for mitigation suggestions. (bls.gov)

Workflow B — Carrier diligence for a single-carrier placement (45–90 minutes)

  • Step 1: NAIC annual & quarterly statutory filings and AM Best rating/Outlook. (content.naic.org)
  • Step 2: Search press & trade press for meaningful recent events (large reserve hits, rating actions, large claims). Use market intelligence providers for deep dives.
  • Step 3: SERFF search for product forms and recent endorsement revisions in the applicable states. (serff.com)

Practical RFP data checklist (fields to request from carriers/brokers)

  • Appetite statements (industry & size limits), capacity limits by product.
  • Example filings and approved rates in target states (SERFF references).
  • Loss runs (24–36 months recommended) with NAICS coding.
  • Company financial summary: statutory surplus, net income, combined ratio (last 3–5 years) — or a signed attestation with NAIC references.
  • Risk-control resources and claims response SLA.

Sample search queries

  • “NAIC annual statement [carrier name] 2024 PDF”
  • “SERFF filing access [state] commercial auto rate filing [carrier / advisory org]”
  • “NCCI loss cost filing [state] 2025 circular”
  • “BLS SOII incidence rate [NAICS code] 2024”
  • “AM Best Market Segment Report U.S. commercial lines 2025”

How to evaluate authority, timeliness and representativeness

Not all sources are created equal. Use this checklist:

  • Authority
    • Prefer regulators (NAIC, state DOI, SERFF) and federal data (BLS) for primary facts. (content.naic.org)
  • Timeliness
    • Check the filing or publication date; rate filings and statutory reports have effective dates — always use the effective date for modeling premium change.
  • Transparency
    • Does the source publish methodology (e.g., NAIC actuarial exhibits, NCCI trend supplements, AM Best methodology)? If not, treat it as directional.
  • Representativeness
    • National aggregates may hide state or industry variation. Use state-level SERFF and NCCI supplements for localized updates. (serff.com)
  • Independence & conflicts
    • Vendor reports may be paid or sponsored; check for conflicts and cross-validate with regulator data.

Quick-reference comparison table: primary sources

Source Typical data Access Best for
NAIC (InsData, annual statements) Company statutory financials, market-level aggregates, model laws Free summaries / paid data downloads Solvency, surplus, company-level trend analysis. (content.naic.org)
SERFF / State DOI filing pages Rate & form filings, approval orders, actuarial exhibits (state-level) Free (state by state) State rate/form history and approval details. (serff.com)
NCCI Workers’ comp loss-costs, classification rules, circulars, claims benchmarking Mix of free & subscription tools Workers’ comp pricing and classification; state filings. (ncci.com)
BLS (SOII / CFOI) Injury rates, incidence by industry, fatality counts Free Industry frequency benchmarks for WC underwriting. (bls.gov)
AM Best / S&P / Moody’s Ratings, market segment reports, credit analysis Paid Credit risk, market outlooks and ratings. (businesswire.com)
Carrier insight hubs (Chubb, Hartford, etc.) Appetite statements, risk-control guides, industry whitepapers Free Appetite, product details, risk control guidance. (chubb.com)

Common pitfalls & how to avoid them

  • Mistake: relying purely on marketing content for underwriting decisions.
    • Fix: always pair carrier published guidance with NAIC/AM Best and regulatory filings.
  • Mistake: using national averages for multi-state accounts without state adjustments.
    • Fix: use state SERFF and NCCI supplements for state-level rate changes. (serff.com)
  • Mistake: ignoring reporting lags (statutory filings vs. real-time market changes).
    • Fix: check the effective date and use press/trade monitoring for near‑real-time news.

Action plan: 30/60/90 day roadmap for buyer teams (practical)

30 days — establish the baseline

  • Create a data inventory: list the states and product lines you procure.
  • Pull NAIC company summaries for your top 10 carriers. (content.naic.org)
  • Identify which states publish SERFF filings publicly and bookmark those pages. (serff.com)

60 days — build automation & templates

  • Subscribe to one paid feed (NAIC InsData or AM Best) or NCCI WorkComp Workstation if you place workers’ comp frequently. (ncci.com)
  • Build a standardized RFP data request (loss runs, risk controls, sample endorsements, company financial summary with NAIC references).

90 days — integrate and negotiate

  • Produce benchmarking reports: carrier-level combined ratio trends, industry frequency/severity by NAICS, state-level rate changes from SERFF and NCCI.
  • Use the results to run an evidence-based negotiation and prepare alternative market strategies (program changes, captive options, E&S placements).

Evaluating and citing the data you find (best practice for buyers)

  • Always cite the source and effective date when you use any rate, loss-cost or financial figure in negotiations or RFPs.
  • When in doubt, attach a PDF copy or screenshot of the NAIC annual statement page or the SERFF filing cover page proving the effective date and approval status.
  • Use consistent naming conventions in internal reports (e.g., NAIC_CompanyName_AnnualStatement_2024.pdf).

Further reading & curated authoritative references (external)

Below are high‑value primary sources you can open immediately. These are selected for U.S.-focused commercial insurance research.

(If you want, I can compile direct PDF links or download-ready NAIC annual statements for up to 10 carriers you name.)

Related internal resources (recommended next reads)

(Semantically related topics to build deeper authority on procurement, regulation and vetting.)

Final checklist — quick reference before you write an RFP or sign a renewal

  • Have I pulled the carrier’s latest NAIC annual statement and checked surplus & combined-ratio trend? (content.naic.org)
  • Have I reviewed state SERFF filings for the product/state combination to confirm any recent approved rate or form changes? (serff.com)
  • For workers’ compensation: did I review the latest NCCI loss-cost supplement and classification changes for the target states? (ncci.com)
  • Did I benchmark industry frequency/severity via BLS data for the NAICS codes on the account? (bls.gov)
  • Do I have a carrier-provided sample endorsement and the supporting form numbers (so my counsel can review language)? (Ask carrier/broker to provide.)

If you want, I can:

  • Build a carrier comparison workbook (Excel / Google Sheets) with NAIC quick-metrics for up to 10 carriers of your choosing.
  • Pull and summarize the last 3 years of SERFF rate filings for a specified state and product line.
  • Create a templated RFP packet with the exact data fields recommended above and sample language to request loss runs and sample endorsements.

Which of these would you like me to start with — the carrier workbook, the SERFF filing summary, or the templated RFP packet?

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