U.S. Auto Insurance Shopping Remains Near Record Highs Despite Growth Slowdown

The quarterly year-over-year shopping growth rate dipped to 1.4% from 3.2% in the first quarter, while new policy growth softened to 3.3%. Despite these modest declines, the market remains active as insurers navigate a balanced landscape of rate revisions. In the second quarter, 36% of rate adjustments were decreases, 38% were increases, and 27% remained neutral.

Distribution trends shifted this quarter, with the exclusive agent channel outpacing direct and independent rivals for the first time since 2022. Growth in this sector rose to 6.8%, while direct channel growth slowed significantly to 4.6%. Geographically, New York and New Jersey led the country in shopping gains, with growth rates of 13% and 12.5% respectively.

Demographic data continues to highlight older policyholders as the primary drivers of market movement. For the 14th consecutive quarter, consumers aged 66 and older recorded the highest shopping growth. LexisNexis analysts identified a specific indicator for this group: those with active home listings are showing a 23.2% attrition rate, compared to 19.7% for those without. Jeff Batiste, senior vice president at LexisNexis Risk Solutions, noted that as consumers move beyond reacting to blanket rate hikes, insurers must rely on precision segmentation to capture and retain business in this increasingly diverse market.