It was the third such survey to be released in recent days. On Monday the Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers reported rate increases were stabilizing. A survey by Aon found that insurance buyers have seen premiums drop by 10 percent.

According to the RIMS survey, in the first quarter, premium prices for property insurance fell by about 1.5 percent. General liability insurance premium prices also fell by 1.4 percent.

RIMS said the results marked the first time in over four years that prices for two major lines of insurance retreated in the same quarter. The cost of property insurance fell 8.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2003 in the first decline in premium prices for any major line of commercial insurance since 2000, RIMS noted.

RIMS found that the price hikes in other lines of insurance also continued to slow, as employment practices liability, crime and, most notably, directors and officers liability all experienced price increases of less than 5 percent. The first quarter renewal information was summarized for RIMS by Advisen Ltd.

"The data we have seen over the last three quarters suggested that rate increases were slowing, and now the latest numbers are clearly demonstrating the shift in the market from last year," said Christopher Mandel, vice president, chief risk officer and secretary for the New York-based RIMS.

"At last year's RIMS conference, we showed that that D&O liability prices were skyrocketing at a rate close to 175 percent, but this year, the majority of the lines are experiencing increases of less than 5 percent," he added. "That's a very dramatic market move."

RIMS said Advisen--a provider of specialized information, analytic and benchmarking tools for commercial insurance professionals--analyzes the survey results continuously, offering a dynamic and virtually real-time window into the current purchase patterns of commercial insurance buyers.

The results represent data compiled from over 1,100 organizations to date, RIMS said.

The organization said the data on first quarter renewal prices validate the market data trends over the last two quarters, which indicated that rate increases were declining.

However, RIMS said there is "some question about the length and depth of this new market." RIMS said the overall commercial insurance market had been experiencing continual price increases since 2000, which was precipitated by a massive decrease in insurance surplus from 2000 to 2001. Now, as supply catches up to demand and without a catastrophic event or high-profile scandal, the market has balanced out and most prices have flattened or decreased, RIMS said.

"The question right now is not whether the market is softening, but instead how long will it stay this way. We wonder if insurers will be able to take a protracted hit on prices in the current economic climate," said David Bradford, chief knowledge officer at Advisen.

"The renewal numbers are clear, but other indicators, like interest rate levels and stock market valuations, affect the cash position of insurers and, therefore, the prices those insurers charge their customers," he added. "Unless those market drivers start contributing more to cash reserves, insurers will have to rely on pricing to sustain necessary cash positions."

Mr. Bradford said that "we'd like to think that insurance prices are determined solely by market events, but the economic reality is other forces contribute significantly to the market dynamics, including how long this soft market will last."

RIMS said that participants who contribute insurance schedule data to the survey can use "Chart-Your-Program" software to create charts and schedules of insurance programs and interactively compare their data with prior-year survey data. They can also use interactive benchmarking tools to compare costs and programs against continuously updated marketplace data.

The subscription or purchase of the online version of the RIMS Benchmarking Service is available at http://rims.advisen.com. Details on the program are at the RIMS Store at RIMS.org.

Risk managers can contribute their data by faxing Advisen at 212 655-7453 or e-mailing current and two prior year policy schedules to [email protected]. They can also fill out a survey online at http://rims.advisen.com.

Advisen will input the data, making it available for online review and comparison within days RIMS said. The participant support line is 1 800655-6590.