Contractors and Insurers Experience an Excess of Concern as Rates Rise

摘要

While construction spending is on the rise in many markets, concerns remain moving forward that are having a direct impact on insurance policies. According to the Associated General Contractors of America's (AGC's) latest report, construction spending in January totaled $1.52 trillion at a seasonally adjusted annual rate-an increase of 1.7%, which is 5.8% higher than in January 2020. However, many projects continue to be delayed. The AGC's 2021 Construction Hiring and Business Outlook Report found that many of the already-scheduled projects have been either delayed or canceled. For instance, 59% of surveyed firms reported they had projects scheduled to start in 2020 that have been postponed until 2021, 44% reported they had projects canceled in 2020 that have not been rescheduled, and 18% said that projects scheduled to start between January and June 2021 have been delayed. Bottom line, few firms expect that the industry will recover to pre-pandemic levels soon.