Filing Watch: Northeast — April 2026 (3-Page Tabloid)
Insurance Xdate
FILING WATCH
Northeast Edition · April 2026
Page 1 — Workers Comp & Commercial Auto
Monthly Rate Briefing

April's commercial-auto increases zeroed in on the riskiest fleets — heavy trucks and medical transport.

Approved in April 2026: rate-increase filings touching 1,000+ Northeast policyholders across workers comp and commercial auto. Heavy trucking and for-profit medical transport carried the steepest numbers, and carriers kept leaning on non-owned and hired-auto exposures. Here's what your clients are about to feel.

Industries in this issue's filings

Trucking & Transportation
in 4 of 5 filings
Healthcare & Med. Transport
in 2 of 5 filings
Construction & Contractors
in 3 of 5 filings
Staffing & PEO
in 1 of 5 filings

Lead Filing

NJCommercial AutoSeverity 4/5

NJM raises a 13,260-policy NJ auto book — heavy trucks +18.4%

Approved April 2, effective July 1. NJM re-prices a 13,260-policyholder, $137.7M New Jersey commercial-auto book with an 8% fleet-factor impact for anyone running five or more vehicles, heavy and extra-heavy trucks at +18.4%, and a flat 25% hike to non-ownership liability across all employee tiers.

NJM adopts the latest ISO Hired Auto loss costs (factor up from 2.29 to 2.56) and adds refined pricing on driver age, violations and claims. Employers whose staff drive personal vehicles for work — a huge, often-overlooked exposure — feel the 25% non-owned increase directly.

+18.4%
Heavy trucks
+25%
Non-owned
13,260
Policyholders
$137.7M
Premium

Also Approved This Cycle

NYCommercial AutoSev 4

Medical transport liability up 20.8% in New York

National Liability & Fire, running a 112.8% loss ratio, raises ambulance, NEMT and medivan liability 20.8% on average — with stacked limit-factor changes pushing some renewals toward 33%. A new standalone Public Auto manual and a 30% renewal cap signal tighter underwriting ahead for for-profit medical fleets.

3,069 policyholders · $72.6M premium · approved Apr 15
NYCommercial AutoSev 4

Hereford's phased livery hike continues toward 16%

Hereford's NYC for-hire book — approved earlier in the phase-in — keeps climbing toward a 16% total through 2028, with default Additional PIP cut to $50,000 and safety discounts gone. Black-car, taxi and ambulette operators face both higher rates and thinner coverage on each renewal. (See page 3 for the coverage cuts.)

24,248 policyholders · $161.8M premium · effective Mar 1
NYWorkers CompSev 3

Carolina Casualty lifts NY staffing comp ~10%

Berkley's Carolina Casualty raises New York workers-comp 9.6% for temporary-staffing agencies, PEOs and specialized high-severity construction — classes it flags as high frequency. The loss-modification factor moves to 1.60 to match competitor pricing. Staffing and PEO books are the ones to re-shop. Effective October 1.

217 policyholders · $5.4M premium · effective Oct 1
PACommercial AutoSev 3

Two PA auto filings push past their indicated caps

Pennsylvania saw a steady run of mid-size commercial-auto increases — carriers adopting ISO loss costs with maximum caps in the 22% range. Non-fleet contractors and certain territories repeatedly drew the top of the band, a continuation of the 'tempered now, more later' pattern from February.

1,587 policyholders · effective Jul 1 · multiple PA filings

Why medical transport keeps surfacing

For-profit ambulance, NEMT and medivan operators have shown up in three of the last four Northeast cycles. The driver is a structural loss problem — National Liability & Fire's 112.8% loss ratio is typical for the class. Carriers are separating these risks into dedicated manuals and capping renewals, both signs the repricing isn't finished. If you write medical transport, the conversation is overdue.

NortheastThis week
Southeast
Midwest / NW
Southwest
How we screen. SERFF filings via Xdates, disposed April 2026, unfavorable policyholder impact, high-to-critical severity, rate-increase effect, Workers Comp (16.0) and Commercial Auto (20.0), 1,000+ policyholders (severity-3 included with reach). Figures are filing-level SERFF snapshots; individual impacts vary. Not placement advice. 1 / 3
Insurance Xdate
FILING WATCH
Northeast Edition · April 2026
Page 2 — The Wider Market: All Other Lines
Beyond WC & Auto

The package and liability market got harder to predict: caps came off, and exclusions piled on.

Same screen, every other commercial line approved in April. Two forces collided — carriers removing the renewal caps that softened past increases, and carriers loading on mandatory exclusions for emerging exposures. Main Street pays on both ends.

Industries in this issue's filings

Restaurants & Food Service
broadly affected
Retail
clothing, repair shops
Contractors & Roofing
AI + deductibles
Non-Profit & Social Services
abuse coverage

Lead Filing

PACMP / Multi-PerilSeverity 4/5

State Farm's PA package filing caps increases at 60% — and some businesses will hit it

Approved April 23, effective July 15. The region's largest filing this cycle by headcount: 32,216 Pennsylvania CMP policyholders and $70.7M in premium. The average lands near 12% — restaurants average 12.6% — but State Farm's indicated need was 20.1%, and individual renewals can climb as much as 60%.

Retail, food service, real estate and repair-shop classes are squarely in scope. When a carrier files a 60% ceiling, it's telling you the loss math runs hotter than the average suggests — budget the worst case for exposed accounts.

~12%
Average
+60%
Max increase
32,216
Policyholders
$70.7M
Premium

Three Filings Worth a Closer Look

NYBOPSev 4

Hiscox removes its 30% renewal cap in New York

The transition rule limiting BOP renewal increases to 30% is gone, exposing insureds to full re-rates at once. Business Income rating factors jump 500%, clothing retailers +22%, financial-services firms +25%, and pre-1980 buildings get a mandatory lead exclusion. Effective October 19.

4,885 policyholders · $4.6M premium · approved Apr 27
NJGeneral LiabilitySev 3

Selective raises the price of additional-insured status 150%

Across a 27,970-policy, $195M NJ GL book, the broad contractor additional-insured endorsement jumps from 3% to 7.5% of GL premium, splits into Basic and Broad tiers, and is clarified to NOT extend to completed operations. General contractors requiring AI status from subs just got more expensive to work for. Effective November 1.

27,970 policyholders · $195.2M premium · approved Apr 27
PAOther LiabilitySev 4

Philadelphia hits PA social services with +25% abuse rates

Philadelphia Indemnity raises Sexual Abuse & Molestation rates 25% for non-profits, specialty schools and camps, citing a 100.2% PA loss ratio and a 9% annual ISO loss trend. For specialty schools, SAM premium now approaches 39% of the GL premium. Effective March 2027.

1,874 policyholders · $10.4M premium · approved Apr 22

The Rest of the Qualifying List

StateCarrierLine / Sub-typeSeverityPolicyholdersEffective
NJCNA (American Cas / Continental)CMP — Businessowners3 / 55,342Sep 1, 2026
PALiberty Mutual (Ohio Cas)Other Liability — GL3 / 58,867Jul 1, 2026
NJPenn NationalCMP — Businessowners3 / 51,224Sep 1, 2026
NYVariousOther Liability — CGL3 / 510,906Oct 1, 2026
PAVariousOther Liability — Combinations3 / 512,549Jul 31, 2026

Also on the radar

A severity-5 State Farm umbrella rebuild in Pennsylvania (approved Apr 12) sits behind a 58% indicated need — the PA combined ratio hit 342% in 2022 — raising per-layer minimums and basic premiums for 2,916 policyholders. And large severity-3 GL books are stacking up: 27,970 in NJ (Selective), 12,549 in PA and 10,906 in NY. The reach is there even where the severity score isn't — these accounts feel real change.

How we screen, page 2. Same filters as page 1 — disposed April 2026, unfavorable impact, severity 4–5 (severity 3 with reach), rate-increase effect, 1,000+ policyholders — applied to every commercial line except Workers Comp and Commercial Auto. Personal and niche/noise lines excluded. Figures are filing-level SERFF snapshots; individual impacts vary. Not placement advice. 2 / 3
Insurance Xdate
FILING WATCH
Northeast Edition · April 2026
Page 3 — Filing Effects: Guidelines, Coverage & Scoring
Beyond the Rate Number

A carrier walked away from 25,000 New York accounts — and the rest tightened the screws.

Same region, the structural changes the rate number can't show: a full market exit, removed renewal caps, scoring models and coverage cuts approved in April. When a carrier exits, thousands of businesses shop at once — and the filings around it show why the market is hardening.

Industries in this page's filings

Retail & Real Estate
market exit
Contractors & Roofing
AI + exclusions
Trucking & Transportation
scoring + tiering
Restaurants & Retail
cap removal

Lead Filing · Market Exit — Region-Wide Signal

NYCMP / Multi-PerilSeverity 5/5

Community Mutual exits New York — 25,031 commercial-package policies non-renewed

Approved April 3, effective December 16, 2025. Community Mutual withdraws entirely from the New York commercial-package market, mass non-renewing 25,031 active policies after terminating its program-manager agreement with Roundhill Express. The book is concentrated in the five boroughs, Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester.

This is the single biggest displacement in the region this cycle. Retail, real estate, restaurants and repair shops across downstate New York need replacement coverage now — and they're shopping into a market that, as the rest of this page shows, is actively tightening. First call wins.

Full exit
NY package
25,031
Policies cut
NYC + LI
Concentration
Now
Shopping

Coverage Contraction & Cap Removal

NYBOPSev 4

Hiscox removes its 30% NY renewal cap — and adds a lead exclusion

Hiscox retires the transition rule that capped BOP renewal increases at 30%, exposing insureds to the full weight of its 12–15% adjustments at once. Business Income rating factors jump 500%, and a mandatory lead exclusion applies to pre-1980 buildings without abatement. The safety net is gone for 4,885 policyholders.

4,885 policyholders · $4.6M premium · approved Apr 27
NJGeneral LiabilitySev 3

Selective makes additional-insured status cost more — and cover less

Across a 27,970-policy GL book, Selective raises the broad contractor AI endorsement from 3% to 7.5% of GL premium (a 150% jump), splits it into Basic and Broad tiers, and clarifies that standard ElitePac AI does NOT extend to completed operations. Subs cost more to add, and the cover is narrower than GCs assume.

27,970 policyholders · $195.2M premium · approved Apr 27
NJBusinessownersSev 3

Penn National layers on tobacco, cannabis and PFAS exclusions

Against a 47.1% indicated need (taking ~10%), Penn National adds mandatory exclusions for tobacco/vape, cannabis and PFAS, plus a cyber exclusion — and forces a $1,000 PD deductible on residential roofers. Retailers, roofers and car washes lose scope and gain deductibles in one filing. Effective September 1.

1,224 policyholders · $7.0M premium · approved Apr 30

Underwriting Guideline Changes

NJCommercial AutoSev 4

NJM raises hired-auto and non-owned exposure across the board

Beyond the heavy-truck rate (page 1), NJM adopts ISO Hired Auto loss costs (factor 2.29 to 2.56) and applies a flat 25% increase to non-ownership liability for all employee tiers — the exposure that quietly sits on any employer whose staff run errands in personal cars. An 8% fleet-factor revision hits every 5+ vehicle account.

13,260 policyholders · $137.7M premium · effective Jul 1
PACommercial UmbrellaSev 5

State Farm rebuilds PA umbrella pricing on a 58% indicated need

State Farm's PA commercial-umbrella filing — the only severity-5 structural action this cycle — raises basic premiums (flat $210), lifts per-layer minimums and restricts schedule-rating eligibility to $750+ premium. The driver is brutal loss experience: a 342% combined ratio in 2022 and 131.6% over five years. Effective June 15.

2,916 policyholders · $2.0M premium · approved Apr 12

New Scoring Models & Tiering

NYCommercial AutoSev 4

National Liability & Fire splits medical transport into its own manual

Alongside the 20.8% liability hike (page 1), the carrier creates a standalone Public Auto Manual for for-hire passenger transport and adds a 30% renewal cap (Rule 25) — a clear signal it intends to re-underwrite the segment hard. NEMT and medivan operators are being formally separated as a distinct, watched risk class.

3,069 policyholders · $72.6M premium · approved Apr 15
PACMP / Multi-PerilSev 4

State Farm's 60% PA cap defines the rest of the program

State Farm's 32,216-policy PA package filing (page 2) is a rate-only action, but the 60% individual cap against a 20.1% indicated average is itself the structural story: it locks exposed retail, food-service and real-estate accounts into a multi-year escalator. The cap is the schedule, not the ceiling.

32,216 policyholders · $70.7M premium · approved Apr 23
NJBusinessownersSev 3

CNA's 20% NJ cap hides an uncapped need up to 106%

CNA re-rates a 5,342-policy NJ businessowners book on a new predictive model across eight coverage-perils, capping renewals at +20%/year for three years. Some uncapped indications reach 106.4%, so the cap guarantees recurring double-digit increases. Water and weather perils carry the heaviest new factors. Effective September 1.

5,342 policyholders · $26.7M premium · approved Apr 21

Also on the radar

The hardening showed up in the caps themselves: Hiscox removed one, while CNA, State Farm and Preferred Mutual added them — and a removed cap and a newly-added cap both point the same way, toward higher true need. With Community Mutual's 25,031 NY accounts shopping into this, expect downstate retail and real estate to be the most-quoted risks of the spring. The agent who calls first, with a realistic number, keeps the account.

How we screen, page 3. SERFF filings via Xdates, disposed April 2026, Northeast states, all commercial lines, severity 3–5, filing effects MARKET_EXIT / COVERAGE_MODIFICATION / UNDERWRITING_REVISION / SCORING_MODEL / TIERING_REVISION. Because these effects mingle with rate changes, each featured filing was pulled and verified for substance; rate-driven filings live on pages 1–2. Policyholder threshold relaxed where the structural change is itself the story. Not placement advice. 3 / 3