What to Expect From Your Insurance In 2025

If you’re like us, then you’re probably looking at 2025 with some slight trepidation on what exactly the new year will have to offer. And believe us, we get it. Entering the new year can feel as daunting as it is exciting when we don’t know exactly what the year has in store for us. 

At Berry Insurance, we’re just as anxiously excited about 2025 as you are, and while we cannot predict everything the new year has in store for our clients, we can try to provide insights so you can be prepared for anything the year has to offer. 

In this article we will be discussing the trends we are noticing in the insurance industry going into 2025, and how you can expect your policy to be affected - including rising premiums, tightening markets, and new policy requirements. 

Tightening markets in 2025

One major trend we're seeing continue from 2025, is high market uncertainty from insurance carriers - causing underwriters to write less policies overall. Stemming from difficult to predict inflation and rising capital costs, underwriters are being more stringent and taking closer looks at loss history, safety records, and financial records of potential policy holders. 

This is especially notable for property insurance - both business property insurance as well as home, renters, or condo policies - with underwriters being more disciplined on the current condition, value, and history of the property you’re looking to insure. 

For example, we’ve noticed certain carriers beginning to deny coverage for homes with roofs over 15 years old. This makes it important for any property owner to prioritize the upkeep of their roof’s structural integrity, as well as making sure any nearby branches are not posing a threat. In fact, insurance companies have begun utilizing drones for roof evaluations, checking whether the property has any branches hanging above or near the roof/property that could potentially cause damage. 

Inspections overall are becoming more common amongst carriers, especially with clients looking to switch to a new insurance carrier. Specifically, many carriers are paying close attention to any previous history of water damages and claims - as well as pushing property owners to install water detection devices to hopefully deter flooding damage. For our guide on how to prepare for a home inspection and what you can expect, read this article: What to Expect from a MA Insurance Home Inspection. 

To learn exactly how underwriters will rate potential policyholders’ homes, read this article: What Underwriters Look For When Writing Home Insurance Coverage. If you are instead a business owner and need to know more about underwriting, read this guide: What Commercial Underwriters Look For When Writing Business Insurance Coverage. 

How will my rates be affected in 2025? 

In the past few years you've likely noticed the rising costs of many of life's necessities, including your insurance policies. Whether or not you'll see these rate increases continue on your policy in 2025 will largely depend on your carrier and policy type. 

How will my personal insurance change in 2025? 

Let’s review the ways in which you can expect your different personal insurance policies to changed in the new year. 

Home/renters/condo insurance: 

  After speaking with the carriers we work with, it seems that overall the rate increases on your personal insurance policies will be less when compared to last year - especially with property insurance policies.

While prices won't be going down in 2025 - the increases are not expected to be as drastic. Of course, rate increases overall will be largely dependent on which carrier you have your policy with, as each carrier will rate clients differently. 

So what causes rate increase in the first place? Well a number of factors. 

With the costs of building materials greatly increasing in the past few years, they have caused a surge in costs for insuring properties. These increases on materials and labor can be seen as a direct result of continued supply chain problems that lead to more expensive construction or replacement costs, which result in more expensive insurance claims and rates. This has also been seen to directly influence increases in replacement cost value, which was observed as a primary driver for home insurance rates in recent years.

On top of these increases, any property located in areas of high-risk weather or storms can expect to see increases in their rates as extreme weather conditions have become more frequent in some areas. While most Massachusetts homeowners may not have to worry about extreme weather conditions, you could still be classified as a coastal or high-risk property. To learn more about policies designed to protect your property in cases of severe weather like wind storms, read our article all about what to know about wind deductibles.

Another factor we're seeing affect property insurance rates is the aftermath of last year's multiple large hurricanes and wildfires around the country. As repairs for these disasters begin to cost insurance companies a lot of money, we may see it beginning to affect the rates on certain policies. Even if you were from a region not affected by these disasters directly, their repercussions on supply chains and inflation of prices may be felt nationwide. 

With hard insurance markets expected to continue into 2025, it's important to know what carrier underwriters will be looking for when approving policies - and why you could be denied. Learn more about what could keep you from getting approved home insurance in this article: Why Your Home Insurance Application May Be Denied.

Personal car insurance:

Beyond having to deal with expensive gas prices, drivers could encounter price increases on their car insurance policy based on multiple factors. Many of these factors were already trends affecting drivers in the past few years and are expected to persist into 2025. 

As we talked about above, the increase on personal auto rates should not be as big as last year, but policyholders should still expect to pay a bit more on their policy. 

Similar to homeowners/condo/renters insurance policies, increased costs of all goods and services make any potential car accidents or collisions all the more expensive to cover. More expensive auto repairs and replacements due to supply chain issues will in turn create more expensive auto insurance rates and premiums. 

Other potential increases to auto insurance policies can come from the higher rate of car accidents - largely due to the increased extreme weather conditions and natural disasters. While most natural disasters and cases of extreme weather are more likely to affect coastal regions, Massachusetts drivers can still be susceptible to encountering freak weather events like snow, flooding or harsh winds that could damage your vehicle or cause accidents. To learn more about what coverage you need on your policy to cover any potential floods or water damage, check out this helpful article: Is Water Damage Covered by Car Insurance? If you’re instead wondering exactly how your insurance will cover you after heavy winds toppled a tree into your car, read up on how insurance covers tree falls. 

With underwriters being more conservative with approving policies, it's smart to stay prepared on what they will be looking for. Learn about the top reasons you could be denied auto coverage here: 7 Reasons Why Your Auto Insurance Application May Be Denied.

How will my business insurance change in 2025? 

When it comes to commercial insurance policies for businesses big and small, rates can be all over the place. This can be dependent upon numerous factors such as the type of business, income, structures, location, and more. 

Going into 2025, we're seeing that most businesses can expect to see a 10% rate increase on their policies across the board. However, if a business has been with the same carrier for a while and has a clean insurance history (i.e. lack of claims), this increase could be brought down to around 6-8% - but all rate increases will be dependent on the carrier you're working with.  

It is also important to note that if any business owns buildings or structures, the increase in their property premium will be significant, as most carriers are increasing the replacement cost (the amount it would take to repair or rebuild the building structure with current prices of construction materials and labor) of buildings due to rising cost of building/repair materials. 

Workers' compensation: 

The Workers' Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau of Massachusetts (WCRIBMA) has asked for a rate increase at approximately 7% higher on average than last year (having seen an 8% decrease in 2024) on workers' compensation policies. 

At this time we are not sure what class codes will be affected, and this is only on average - so some rates could go up or down. If you need ways to potentially lower workers' comp costs, check out this guide on how to lower rates by increasing safety: How to Lower Workers’ Comp Costs (And Reduce Employee Injuries).

Business property: 

Going into 2025, the property market is still in flux - meaning that where and what insurance carriers are willing to write will be more restrictive or expensive. For example, brand new property near the coasts will be harder to receive approval for coverage and likely cost far more than property further inland. 

General liability: 

At the moment, general liability rates are sort of nebulous as some carriers have had rate increases while others have currently stayed the same. 

However, if your business has had an increase in sales or you are expecting an increase in sales soon, you should be sure to update your renewal policy as soon as the policy renews rather than when it gets picked up during an audit. Otherwise, you could have to pay any additional premium resulting from the audit in full. We recommend businesses update their policy so that they have installment billing, where they can pay for that difference over installments, rather than be hit with a big audit due at the end. 

Commercial auto:

In the past couple of years, we have seen multiple carriers greatly increasing their commercial auto policy rates for clients. These increases may continue for any businesses updating their vehicles or fleets, selling off older vehicles for newer models, or making changes to current vehicles. 

Also, business owners should note that your drivers and claims history will affect the rates you receive on your policy. 

Some carriers are putting through large rate increases depending on the class of business being insured. If a carrier has had a history of claims with a certain class of business in the past, they may impose increases on that type going forward, but not others. This is when it’s good to update your current insurance agency for the new year so they can determine the best carrier for you. 

Any business can achieve better rates by having good claim practices. These can include having safe driving training, safety manuals in place, as well as routine safety training for employees. Berry Insurance is happy to help any business that doesn't know where to start on implementing said safety features. Interested in getting the most out of your insurance agent for your business? Learn more about the benefits of having your business insurance with Berry Insurance. 

Is remarketing your policy a good option? 

As you now know the many reasons you can expect to see an increase in your current insurance rates and premiums, you may be wondering if it is a good time to go price shopping around with other carriers.

While inflation and the many factors we mentioned above will undoubtedly cause industry-wide changes, remarketing could offer you some (albeit minimum) savings. However, do note that with increased property inspections amongst carriers - it may be more difficult to get a new policy. 

If you choose to remarket your policy, prior to renewal tends to be the best time, as it gives insurance agencies more flexibility in obtaining multiple quotes from different carriers for their clients. 

However, choosing to stay with your current carrier may make you eligible for discounts or member bonuses that may not be available if you drop them for the next lowest price. 

At Berry Insurance, we work with a handful of competitive and reputable insurance carriers, so if you’re a client of ours, our agents can help you find the best carrier for you, as well as provide guidance as to whether remarketing is the best option for you. 

To learn more about some of the top insurance providers recommended by Berry Insurance, read up on the best carriers for personal insurance as well as business insurance offered in Massachusetts.

Saving money in the new year

We understand that in the new year the last thing you want to worry about is your insurance policy changing or premium increasing. While this is unfortunately the current trend in the industry, Berry insurance wants to ensure all of our clients feel empowered to choose the right policy for their budget - without compromising on the right amount of coverage. 

Reach out to us to discuss your current insurance policies and what may be the best options for you to save money this new year. 

For more information on how to save on your insurance policies in times of hardship, read our guides on ways to save on auto/home/renters insurance during a crisis and where to cut costs of business insurance during a crisis.