American Prospect: “Climate disasters are causing “record-high insurance losses,” a recent CNN article began, citing insurance industry research. The first half of 2025 brought about “a new market reality,” it said, with climate-related losses for insurers setting a record for the January-to-June period. It is true that insurance companies have made some large payouts for recent climate disasters, and are choosing to pull out of certain markets entirely. However, it is not true that the industry as a whole is suffering. On the contrary, it is rolling in profits. Credulous reporting like CNN’s reflects a playbook lately adopted by insurance companies: Play the victim, exaggerate losses and threats—and carefully avoid any discussion of the bottom line, or how much executives and investors are making. Indeed, despite home insurers’ public griping, the industry is more profitable than ever. Executive compensation is increasing thanks in large part to so-called performance-linked pay packages that incentivize claim denials and other anti-consumer practices. As we detail below, a review of the uneven industry data available from public filings reveals just how well insurance executives are doing at the expense of their customers. The U.S. property and casualty (or P&C) insurance industry, which includes home and auto, had a banner year in 2024. Profits hit an all-time high of nearly $167 billion, up 91 percent from 2023 and 330 percent from 2022. The bulk of the industry’s profits come from investment income, though P&C insurers also cleared more than $25 billion in underwriting profit last year. And that’s a conservative estimate, based on a method of calculating underwriting gains, called a “combined ratio,” that artificially weighs down the metric by adding extra baggage to the “claims paid out” side of the equation. The industry adds in overhead expenses, including office space, advertising, and commissions, with underwriting losses. But if you look strictly at the ratio of claims paid out relative to premiums collected, insurers are coming out on top in the vast majority of the country’s ZIP codes. Those record profits come at the expense of aspiring homeowners, who are facing unjustified premium hikes, claim denials, and coverage withdrawals. While most borrowers finance their homes for 30 years, insurers reprice risk annually. This temporal imbalance is a major problem. Home insurance is becoming so expensive that a growing number of households, especially first-time homebuyers, are struggling to make their monthly mortgage payments. The dwindling availability and affordability of insurance also hurts renters by making it harder for developers to build. Anyone listening to the property and casualty industry could be forgiven for believing insurers are struggling. The industry’s claims of massive “losses,” however, are not reflected in financial reality. Shareholders and executives continue to make a killing year in and year out. Take, for instance, Florida-based Slide Insurance CEO Bruce Lucas and his wife, Slide’s chief operating officer. Last year, they brought home direct compensation worth $21 million and $16.5 million, respectively, as Florida homeowners endured surging premiums. Add in bonuses and stock awards, and their full pay package was $50 million…”