From the Editor's Desk
Season of Discontent

• Patricia Vowinkel
• November 2020
• 

While the U.S. watches and waits for the results of the 2020 Presidential election, many in the industry are counting the days until the end of this year's hurricane season.

After having blown through the alphabetical list of 21 Atlantic tropical storm names for 2020, the naming protocol has moved on to the Greek alphabet, starting with subtropical storm Alpha in mid-September. In 2005, the first time the Greek alphabet was used, the storms got six letters in with Zeta. This year could pass that mark.

Property insurers have been tested this year on several fronts—wildfires have burned millions of acres in California, insured losses from the hurricanes are in the billions and the pandemic has resulted in a wave of business interruption claims.

The riots that broke out in cities across the United States after the death of George Floyd now raise new questions and concerns for underwriters.

In “Who Was Prepared for This?” Best's Review examines the civil unrest in the United States over the past several months and the trend globally.

November is Property Insurance Awareness Month and Workers' Comp Awareness Month. Best's Review presents the ranking of the top homeowners multiple peril writers in this issue and examines developments in the broader commercial property market. Workers' compensation, the largest commercial insurance line of business, is also a focus.

In workers' comp, insurers face an evolving regulatory landscape over the question of whether workers with COVID-19—an infectious disease—can file a workers' comp claim in certain cases.

“On the Front Lines” looks at the new rules that have been going into effect in some states and what it means for insurers.

In the life sector, insurers have announced some significant M&A deals in the past few months. Private equity firm KKR & Co. agreed to buy retirement and life insurance company Global Atlantic Financial Group; Empower Retirement said it will acquire the retirement plan business of Massachusetts Mutual, and MetLife agreed to acquire Versant Health.

“To Buy or to Sell?” examines these initiatives and the reasons behind them.

Property/casualty reserving is one of the top considerations for boards and audit committees. In “Effective Governance,” senior, seasoned reserving professionals offer a “how-to” guide for directors.

Coming up in next month's Best's Review, look for The Entrepreneurial Agent/Broker. In our special three-part series, ^AMBestTV and Best's Review will interview top industry leaders. These interviews will also air on ^AMBestTV beginning on Nov. 16.

Finally, around this time of the year AM Best publishes its Guide to Understanding the Insurance Industry. The 2020 edition of the guide is now available on Amazon. The 64-page book contains all new statistical information and articles on the people and issues that help shape today's insurance industry.