MALVERN, PA — Cyberattacks, economic instability, artificial intelligence and increasingly frequent natural disasters are emerging as interconnected threats that could challenge the resilience of insurance markets in the United States and United Kingdom, according to a new study released by the Insurance Information Institute and Munich Re US.
The RiskScan 2026 report, based on responses from more than 1,700 consumers, business leaders, insurance professionals and carriers, found growing concern that multiple risks are compounding one another rather than occurring independently.
The study identified cyber incidents, economic pressures and artificial intelligence as the top concerns across all surveyed groups, reflecting what researchers described as a more interconnected risk environment.
Researchers also found that so-called secondary catastrophe perils—including floods, severe storms, winter weather and wildfires—are increasingly viewed as frequent and high-impact events, challenging traditional assumptions about catastrophe exposure and risk diversification.
Artificial intelligence ranked as the most consequential emerging technology among respondents, with concerns extending beyond adoption to include regulatory, operational, liability and systemic risks.
The report also highlighted persistent insurance protection gaps, particularly for flood and cyber coverage, despite growing awareness of those risks among businesses and insurance professionals.
“Today’s risk environment is being shaped not only by catastrophe and cyber exposures, but also by the interaction between economic inflation, geopolitical uncertainty, supply chain pressures and rising legal costs,” said Michel Léonard, chief economist and data scientist at the Insurance Information Institute.
“The data shows economic conditions are increasingly acting as a multiplier of insurance risk, affecting affordability, claims severity, capital allocation and long-term market stability across the insurance value chain,” Léonard said.
The survey found that inflation, economic decline and rising property insurance costs remain among the most significant concerns across all respondent groups. Participants also increasingly linked insurance affordability challenges to broader economic pressures, including supply chain disruptions and geopolitical uncertainty.
Another finding was growing recognition of legal system abuse as a contributor to rising property and casualty insurance costs, reflecting broader concerns about long-term market stability and affordability.
Marcus Winter, president and chief executive officer of North America property and casualty reinsurance at Munich Reinsurance America, said the findings underscore the need for businesses and communities to address increasingly complex risks spanning cyber threats, business interruption, natural catastrophes and emerging AI exposures.
The study was conducted in 2026 by independent market research firm RTi Research and surveyed participants across five market segments: consumers, small business owners, middle-market decision-makers, property and casualty agents and brokers, and insurance carriers.
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