In the wake of the latest market correction toward softer conditions, some surplus lines experts are suggesting that hard insurance markets are not what they used to be—and in fact, may never be the same again. A year ago, the E&S market was still recovering from many of the lumps it took when Superstorm Sandy struck the East Coast in October 2012.

With rates increasing across the board on property/casualty risks as a result a year ago, surplus lines insurers and brokers had described the market then as definitely firming, if not quite hard. Today, the consensus among executives is that the market is softer.