US insurers banked $68.7 billion in 2025 as policyholders fueled a record $1.27 trillion surplus

A new analysis is adding fuel to a debate many homeowners and drivers already know well: Insurance bills keep climbing, even as insurers report eye-popping gains.

Public Citizen's latest review says 2025 stood out for insurers, with property and casualty carriers delivering their best underwriting performance in more than 20 years.

What happened?

Public Citizen's analysis, summarized by Repairer Driven News, put 2025 underwriting income for U.S. property and casualty insurers at $68.7 billion. That figure refers to premium dollars left over after insurers cover claims and operating costs.

Using newly released data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, the group also reported $111.6 billion in investment income and a year-end policyholder surplus of a record $1.27 trillion.

It said the industry's combined ratio came in at 92.9%, which amounts to roughly $7 in underwriting profit for every $100 of premiums collected. The group added that, aside from the Palisades and Eaton fires in Los Angeles, 2025 did not include major hurricanes making landfall.

Why does it matter?

Families across the country have been told that higher premiums are necessary to keep insurers financially stable, particularly as climate-related disasters put more pressure on the market. But Public Citizen said the latest figures point to a different story.

"At the same time, insurers did not reduce their operating costs," the release states. "Total underwriting expenses rose to $252.2 billion, growing faster than premiums themselves. In other words, the industry didn't make more money because it became more efficient or cut overhead. Instead, insurers charged higher premiums while paying less in claims."

Public Citizen said surplus rose 27% from 2022, "when the industry was pleading poverty to regulators."

The report also highlighted bigger pay packages at the top. Chubb CEO Evan Greenberg received $33 million in 2025, $3 million more than the year before, while Allstate CEO Tom Wilson made more than $45 million. Repairer Driven News, citing Public Citizen, also said State Farm's outgoing CEO, Michael Tipsord, topped personal lines executives in cash compensation in 2022 with $24.4 million.

What are people saying?

"The result is a transfer of money from policyholders to shareholders and executives who are now sitting on record capital and record profits," the release states. "Policyholders' surplus, or the financial cushion insurers hold, is often used to justify arguments that higher premiums are needed to keep them financially stable."

On executive compensation, the release added: "For years, insurers have paid executives top-tier compensation while raising premiums under the guise of financial need."

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