08 October 2025
General Aviation Insurance Market Update Q3 2025
As we reflect upon the third quarter of 2025, the General Aviation insurance market continues to experience the abundance of available capacity that has characterised the sector throughout the year. Despite mounting concerns regarding pricing adequacy and an unfortunately active summer of losses, rates continue to soften across most segments of General Aviation, though at a mildly reduced pace compared to the aggressive reductions witnessed in 2024. In this update, we explore some of the factors currently affecting the rating trends across the General Aviation sector and highlight some of the more significant losses and their impact on the insurance market.
Hull & Liability rates continue on a downward trend
As was previously predicted in this edition of Plane Talking, General Aviation Hull and Liability rates have continued to soften through Q3 of 2025. This trend has been sustained by the significant overcapacity from both new entrants and an increased appetite for the class from those who, historically, focused their expertise and capacity in the Airline and Aerospace Infrastructure space.
The reduction in available premium income is forcing insurers to either revise their estimates for the year or to offer larger percentage shares of any given risk to minimise the impact of premium reductions.
As a result, we are seeing more markets revert to quoting for 100% shares, which tends to indicate genuine insurer concerns regarding the rating adequacy of historical quota-share business. This is certainly good news for general aviation insurance buyers, at least in the short term, but it remains to be seen if this is a sustainable situation in the medium and long term. Much will depend upon the frequency and severity of losses in the sector.
Even though many insurers will lose money in both the 2024 and 2025 underwriting years, it is widely accepted that several significant losses in the GA sector will not significantly impact the current softening of rates, at least in the short term. Only a reduction in available capacity, a significant increase in the cost of reinsurance and less available quota-share capacity, will be the catalyst for market hardening.
Whilst there is currently much speculation as to who might be the first high-profile name to withdraw from the sector, it is likely that significant capacity will be available into 2026 and beyond.
Pressure on GA Underwriter Retention
New underwriting units continue to start up, most recently ARK Syndicate 4020 with Alex Cullen at the helm, continuing the underwriter merry-go-round. The inevitable knock-on effect of the creation of new underwriting units is that the expertise needs to be replaced by those companies losing their underwriting talent. This puts significant pressure on a market sector lacking an abundance of experience and depth of knowledge. Significant investment is needed in the sector to ensure that talent is developed now, so that General Aviation clients can continue to be serviced at an adequate level in future years.
General Aviation claims and aviation safety
The General Aviation market continues to record a steady flow of daily incidents. General aviation is one of the most dynamic and diverse sectors of the aviation market, covering a broad range of aircraft, operations and missions around the world. General Aviation losses and claims are therefore extremely varied. Below, we’ve highlighted a selection of recent losses recorded in Q3 2025:
- London Southend Airport, UK - 13 July 2025 - A Beechcraft B200 Super King Air crashed immediately after takeoff, killing both pilots, a doctor and a nurse.
- Centerville, Alabama – 20 August 2025 - A Patriot CX1900A crashed shortly after taking off from Bibb County Airport, tragically resulting in fatalities. The investigation is ongoing, but early reports suggest possible mechanical issues.
- Bangor International Airport, Maine – 22 August 2025 - A Cessna 185 crashed near the airport, resulting in one fatality.
- Central Papua, Indonesia - 10 September 2025 - A Eurocopter AS 350B3+ crashed into a wooded mountainside in adverse weather, killing four.
- Santa Lucia Air Base, Mexico – 10 September 2025 - C-295M was involved in an accident shortly after departure from Military Air Base No. 1.
- Island Lake, Manitoba, Canada - 13 September 2025 - A DHC-2 Beaver floatplane crashed during a landing attempt, killing four passengers.
These incidents are just a small snapshot of the varied losses the General Aviation sector experiences on a day-to-day basis. Overall, losses are widely recognised to have increased following the industry's recovery post-pandemic, and General Aviation insurance claims are also increasing in severity, driven by higher aircraft values, increased repair costs, and rising liability awards.
General Aviation Outlook
As we enter the final straight of 2025, it is hard to predict anything other than the trend of softening rates continuing until the end of the year and into 2026. Although there is a general feeling amongst insurers that current pricing levels are not sufficient to return an acceptable underwriting profit, there remains significant overcapacity in the sector. Barring a significant market-changing loss and/or a significant reduction in available capacity, Q4 2025 looks to be another good year for the General Aviation insurance buyer. In 2025, we have seen several buyers taking advantage of multi-year policy periods offered by insurers who are looking to partner on a long-term basis, and we believe that this trend will continue.
Industry stakeholders should prepare for eventual market withdrawals and pricing corrections. Whilst beneficial to aircraft owners and operators in the short term, persistent overcapacity presents long-term challenges for the stability of the General Aviation insurance marketplace.
As ever, the future outlook is littered with caveats. Despite the challenges presented, the General Aviation insurance market continues to adapt and evolve to anticipate our clients' needs. We are constantly reviewing our offering and that of the market and ensuring that clients are purchasing products that will provide appropriate coverage both now and in the future as their operations evolve.
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