REPORT · EVEREST GROUP × TINUBU
Surety Outlook 2026: Tech & Ops Benchmarks
Surety is investing. The connection between carrier and broker hasn't kept up.
AVAILABLE
NOV 04
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Surety Outlook 2026: Tech and Ops Benchmarks, conducted by Everest Group and commissioned by Tinubu, examines where Surety organizations across North America are spending, how much AI adoption has actually grown, and where the workflow between carrier and broker breaks down. The conclusion: Surety doesn't have a technology adoption problem. It has a connectivity problem. .
What This Year's Report Covers
Surety's operating costs are high, and carriers know where the savings are:
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Carriers report an average expense ratio of 49%, higher than other specialty lines
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They estimate automation could free up about 7.5% of everything they spend
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More than three-quarters still report difficulty quantifying modernization ROI
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69% of brokers and 31% of carriers put more than 6% of gross written premium into technology
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The share of carriers not using AI fell from 27% to zero in a year
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Only 15% use AI widely, and most of it is layered onto existing workflows
The industry has connected the back end of a transaction. Closer to the underwriting decision, the connection drops:
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Connectivity is weakest at the stages where carriers and brokers work most closely
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On new-client contract bonds, 54% of brokers report turnaround of six days or more, while only 15% of carriers say the same
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Only 8% of carriers expect connectivity to drive premium growth
PRE-RELEASE
Available November 4.
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