Transportation Market Update: Spring 2026

Brown & Riding’s Spring 2026 Transportation Market Update provides an overview of the current transportation marketplace across multiple sectors, with a detailed look at excess surplus lines insurance for transportation network companies.

A brief summary of the 10-page report is below.

For a comprehensive look, including key observations and insights, click the button below.

Transportation Network Company (TNC) insurance is one of the most complex and technically demanding niches in the excess and surplus lines market. From understanding how liability shifts across operational periods to navigating the interplay between personal auto policies and commercial programs, the gaps in coverage are rarely obvious until a claim surfaces. This guide offers a practical, experience-driven breakdown of how TNC programs are structured, where disputes most often arise, and what it takes to build coverage that holds up under pressure.

The U.S. trucking industry is navigating one of its most challenging periods in recent memory, with a prolonged freight recession, rising insurance costs, and nuclear verdicts squeezing operators at every level. This section of the market update breaks down turbulence drivers in the market, emerging early signs of relief, and what it all means for your clients’ insurance programs.

The excess transportation market has entered 2026 in a relatively stable position, with flat to modest rate increases for most accounts and preferred risks benefitting from healthy competition. But this stability is nuanced and account-specific. Loss history, venue, and risk controls are key factors driving individual outcomes, and carriers are deploying capacity more selectively in challenging venues and around Hired and Non-Hired Auto.

Motor truck cargo losses have surged in recent years, with theft becoming increasingly more sophisticated, extending beyond physical theft and into cyberattacks and coordinated, fraud-based schemes. These trends have prompted underwriters to scrutinize accounts with theft activity more closely, and the rise in strategic theft has exposed coverage gaps in standard cargo policies.

Auto coverage alone is not enough for medical transport operations, and the gaps it leaves behind are exactly where the most severe and costly claims tend to arise. From patient handling injuries and professional liability exposures to sexual abuse and molestation allegations, NEMT and EMS operators face a distinct risk profile that demands a purpose-built Professional Liability and General Liability package. Learn more about the most common claim scenarios, where standard policies fall short, and what a well-structured PL/GL program should include to ensure your clients are truly protected.

For additional observations and insights from Brown & Riding’s experts, click the button below.

Copyright © 2026. Brown & Riding. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission.

Beau Cantrell, Will Cea, Lauren Shane, and Kelly Sorensen bring their breadth of expertise to B&R’s Transportation Practice, led by Tim Pedersen, Jr., and Courtney Murphree. Working with a nationwide team of dedicated professionals, they offer extensive knowledge of the transportation industry, along with superior service and a holistic approach to coverage.