![The aviation insurance market began to level off in 2024 and has continued to stabilize and soften through 2025 and now into 2026. [Image Credit: David Weaver/Adobe Stock/Firefly]](https://www.flyingmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Insurance-image.jpeg)
It may be hard to believe, but I’m genuinely passionate about aviation insurance, and I love the fact that my business is anything but boring. Shifting markets, evolving underwriting criteria, emerging technologies, and the day‑to‑day challenge of finding coverage for virtually anything aviation‑related that crosses my desk are what make this field so engaging.
I know you’re wondering how insurance could be exciting, and with all due respect to the many fine actuaries, there are some roles in our industry that would have me banging my head against the wall. Aviation insurance brokerage, however, is anything but dull. In fact, it’s one of the more economically resilient and, yes, lucrative corners of the aviation world.
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We’re currently undergoing a particularly interesting phase that reflects a soft but fragile market, new technologies improving underwriting efficiency, and fresh entrants increasing capacity, all against the backdrop of rising claims and higher legal settlement costs. To understand how these competing forces affect you as an aircraft owner or operator, it helps to first get a clear lay of the land.
Aviation Insurance Supply Chain
Aviation insurance companies can distribute their product either directly to the consumer or through insurance agents or brokers. Currently, there is only one insurance company in the United States that operates on a true direct-to-consumer model.
The direct model has the perceived benefit of “cutting out the middleman” as the insurer doesn’t pay agent and broker commissions, though it does need to employ additional staff to sell and service customers’ policies. The trade-off is that the insurance professional you work with has only one option (their employer), so if underwriting appetites shift, or you transition into an aircraft that is outside their underwriting appetite, you may be forced to start over elsewhere.
- READ MORE: How Insurance Impacts Your Aviation Financing Terms
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Most domestic aviation insurers contract with insurance agents and brokers who sell and service their policies. The distinction between agent and broker is a subtle one and often misunderstood. In simple terms, a true insurance agent has a fiduciary obligation to represent the insurer and look after their best interest foremost while an insurance broker has a fiduciary obligation to their client above all.
In aviation insurance, nearly all professionals who are not captive employees of a direct writer are technically functioning in a broker capacity, even if the terms are used interchangeably. That distinction ultimately benefits the consumer.
There is also a third distribution model that brings an additional intermediary between the insurer and consumer called a managing general agent (MGA). An MGA is an entity contracted by an insurance company to handle underwriting, policy issuance, and sometimes claims. Insurers typically use MGAs when entering a specialized market where they lack in‑house expertise. An experienced MGA can combine seasoned underwriting talent with modern technology to bring a new product to market quickly and scale it efficiently.
MGAs will take on many of the tasks typically attributed to an insurance company, including underwriting, policy issuance, and claims handling, and they will contract with insurance
brokers to distribute their products, like an insurer. Today, one aviation MGA operates on a direct‑to‑consumer basis, while the rest rely on brokers.
The advantages of MGAs are speed, flexibility, and innovation. The downside is that many MGAs outsource claims handling to third‑party administrators (TPAs), which can occasionally result in less consistent service following a loss. MGAs also face greater long‑term uncertainty. There are, however, several aviation MGAs that have been in existence for years with proven service, stability and longevity.
If all of this feels confusing, you’re not alone. That’s why working with an experienced aviation insurance professional matters. A good broker can help you navigate these structures and align you with the provider that best matches your aircraft, experience level, risk tolerance, and service expectations.
Market Landscape
The aviation insurance industry entered a severe hard market wave as the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020 and remained tough for several years thereafter. Most insurers at that time had loss ratios deeply in the red and faced headwinds of supply chain delays, inflation driven increases in repair costs, and rising legal expenses that made it difficult to dig out of that hole.
Fortunately, the market began to level off in 2024 and has continued to stabilize, and I dare say, soften through 2025 and now into 2026.
One catalyst for this shift has been the arrival of new insurers and MGAs. After prolonged hard markets, high pricing often attracts fresh capital from companies without the baggage of prior losses to offset. For many insurers, partnering with an MGA is the fastest way to enter the aviation space, and we’ve seen a wave of new aviation MGAs over the past several years.
More insurance options amid a relatively limited market of aviation insurance policyholders means more competition and better outcomes for the consumer. Indeed, across many segments, insurers are once again broadening appetites and sharpening pricing in an effort to gain, or simply retain,
market share.
Part 91 Owner-Flown Aircraft
For owner‑flown piston aircraft, premiums have generally remained flat. This segment has historically been more stable due to lower limits and smaller average premiums, but owners are benefiting from greater flexibility in challenging scenarios such as senior pilot age, low‑time transitions, and higher hull values.
Almost without exception, the aviation insurance community has embraced the FAA’s new MOSAIC regulations, and we are not seeing much pushback from underwriters when clients want to fly under Mosaic rules.
Turbine owner pilots are seeing a more drastic reduction in premiums as they were hit with more severe rate increases during the hard market cycle and some of the new MGAs are specifically targeting this class of business due to the high average revenue per policy it generates. Now is a good time for owners of turbine aircraft to seek higher liability limits and inquire about more flexible training options, as long as the alternate options proposed are not sacrificing quality or safety.
Part 91 Professionally Crewed Aircraft
Part 91 professionally crewed aircraft have always been desirable due to their lower loss ratios and generally more structured and formal safety and risk management practices.
Competition remains strong for this business, though many newer MGAs can’t accommodate the very high limits and hull values this segment often requires. As a result, we’re seeing modest rate reductions from legacy insurers, but less innovation compared to the owner‑flown turbine market.
Commercial Operations
Commercial aviation is always difficult to generalize given its breadth, but conditions are improving here as well. Commercial policyholders with profitable loss ratios (<40 percent) and who implement best practices in risk management and safety are seeing reductions in rates and greater flexibility in limits and in the availability of ancillary coverages that facilitate post-incident business continuity, such as extra expense for rental engines and temporary replacement aircraft.
Experimental and Kitbuilt Aircraft
Experimental and kitbuilt aircraft have always been more expensive to insure due to the limited experience data insurers have to work with and greater losses in this category. The positive news is that more insurers and MGAs are now willing to write a broader range of experimental aircraft, often at more competitive prices than just a few years ago, especially for those models that have many flying examples.
Putting Theory Into Practice
You might be thinking all this market theory is great for a course on the subject but wondering what the concrete steps are to get better insurance outcomes. In practice, it comes down to first understanding the market landscape and then choosing the right aviation insurance professional to navigate it for you.
If you want lots of options across the spectrum of the market, choose an independent aviation insurance broker. If you like working with big companies with many different insurance divisions, there are plenty of aviation insurance brokerages owned by private equity or publicly traded firms. If you prefer a more personal, boutique experience, there are family-owned aviation insurance brokerages in just about every region of the country. If you like working directly with one underwriter and don’t see value in a professional intermediary, work with one of the direct writing insurers or MGAs and develop a relationship there.
I learned early in my career that no company can be everything to everyone. Each of the distribution channels I described above has its value and place in our industry. Regardless of the path you choose, the best results typically come from a long‑term relationship built on transparency and trust. Complete applications thoroughly. Provide context where it matters. If you’re a transition pilot, outline your proposed training plan. If you’ve made a prior claim, explain what you learned and how it improved your risk profile.
An experienced aviation insurance professional can synthesize this information into a compelling submission that leverages today’s improving market to deliver coverage terms that may be better than anything you’ve seen in a while.
Jargon Busters
Explaining often-misunderstood aviation insurance lingo:
Named Insured
The owner of the policy, who is responsible for paying premiums and who has full control to manage coverage, file and settle claims, and receive all the benefits a policy offers. This is not the same as an “additional insured” who typically only gets limited liability protection tied to specific operations of the named insured.
Why this matters: Only the named insured truly controls the policy and misunderstanding this can leave parties either unexpectedly uninsured or grant too much control to a third party.
Pilot Warranty
A policy provision that specifies who may operate the aircraft. This may list approved named pilots and/or include an open pilot clause with minimum rating, experience, and training requirements. Most pilot warranties require the aircraft to be “operated by” an approved pilot, which has a very different definition than pilot in command (PIC) in FAA parlance. As a result, coverage can be jeopardized if an unapproved pilot manipulates the controls, even if an approved pilot is legally acting as PIC.
Why this matters: A well-intended training or transition flight can inadvertently void coverage if the pilot warranty is violated.
Named Pilot
A pilot specifically approved by the insurer and listed in the pilot warranty. Coverage applies to the named insured when this pilot operates the aircraft, but it does not mean the pilot is personally insured for liability unless the policy explicitly provides that protection.
Why this matters: Being a named pilot doesn’t guarantee personal liability protection.
Physical Damage Liability
Coverage (in non-owned/renters’ policies) that applies when the policyholder is legally liable for damage to a non-owned aircraft. This is not the same as all-risk hull insurance. Usually, the insurer will defend their policyholder against a physical damage liability claim and it can take a while to settle.
Why this matters: Relying on renters’ insurance as a full substitute for the owner’s policy can create costly coverage gaps.
‘Smooth’ Limit
An informal but common term used to describe a combined single liability limit with no per-passenger or per-person sublimit. Smooth limits provide broader liability protection but are more expensive and may not be available to low-time or non–instrument-rated pilots.
Why this matters: In a serious accident, smooth limits can mean the difference between full protection and exposed personal assets.
This feature first appeared in the April Issue 969 of the FLYING print edition.
