Lawsuit surge – Federal tort cases rose 20% between 2022–2024; premises liability claims jumped from 4,516 to 5,632 cases in the same period. The severity of general liability claims has risen 57% over the last decade.
Nuclear verdicts – Premises liability verdicts exceeding $10M rose 52% in 2024 vs. 2023. Mass shootings have doubled in 10 years, contributing to these outsized awards.
Premium explosion – Liability insurance rates rose 9% in Q4 2025 even as overall insurance rates fell 8%. General liability specifically rose 30%+ in some cases. One landlord cited umbrella/excess premiums quadrupling since 2020.
Plaintiff bar advertising – Morgan & Morgan spends $350M/year on ads, and the broader personal injury industry is aggressively marketing to potential claimants — including those with minor or fabricated injuries.
Carrier pullback – Insurers are adding exclusions (sexual abuse, firearms, animal attacks) and refusing to cover buildings with crime scores above 30, pushing more landlords into the surplus lines market at even higher cost.
Uneven playing field – Large portfolio owners have negotiating leverage; smaller landlords do not, leaving them more exposed.
“Landlords are taking on a lot more risk than they ever have, and they are not set up to do so.”
Source: BisNow
Multifamily Market News 