US insurance carriers are preparing for a major change to Commercial General Liability (GL) rating, with the 2026 ISO overhaul set to affect classification, pricing and governance processes across the market.
The scale of the transition is outlined in an Earnix analysis, which highlights more than 55 new classifications alongside the consolidation of more than 130 existing classifications into roughly 60. The changes also include updated loss costs during 2026 and a multistate forms revision affecting policies written on or after 1 October 2026 in many jurisdictions.
For carriers with large commercial books spanning multiple states, the impact will reach well beyond rating changes. Existing policies need to be mapped against the revised classification structure, while proprietary pricing strategies must be transferred accurately and premium changes understood before they reach customers. All of this must take place against differing state-specific renewal timelines.
The existing book of business is a particular challenge. Some classification changes can be mapped directly, but others require input from underwriters or additional risk information. For national carriers, this turns the transition into a sizeable migration exercise rather than a straightforward system update.
Premium visibility will also be important as carriers prepare for implementation. Pricing teams need to establish what is driving a change in premium, whether that comes from a new classification, updated loss costs, changes to exposure treatment or the carrier’s own pricing decisions.
For example, a premium increase from $42,000 to $49,500 provides limited insight on its own. Breaking the movement down by the factors behind the change gives actuarial and underwriting teams a clearer basis for reviewing the impact.
Maintaining proprietary pricing strategies through the change presents another challenge. Loss-cost multipliers, tiering, schedule rating and credits or debits all need to be preserved, while manual implementation can make it increasingly difficult to distinguish standard ISO content from carrier-specific pricing logic.
The differing adoption dates across states add another layer to the transition. With many existing policies remaining on legacy plans until renewal, carriers may need to operate both legacy and 2026 rating approaches at the same time. Effective-date management, version control and coordination between teams will therefore be important to implementation.
The changes also form part of a wider ISO modernisation programme. Commercial Auto and Property changes are expected to follow in 2027, meaning the processes carriers establish during the GL transition could provide the framework for managing future rating and regulatory changes.
According to Earnix’s analysis, protecting carrier-specific pricing logic while moving between legacy and updated rating structures will be a central consideration. Earnix’s Price-It platform integrates ISO Electronic Rating Content to support the transition, including portfolio impact assessment, pricing logic preservation, testing and implementation.
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