A questionnaire circulated by the Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.) this week proved what many in the insurance industry likely already suspect: that the coming year will include a mix of good and bad news in terms of low profitability, higher federal oversight and an increased market for cyber security coverage.

Out of the 11 questions asked, only five of the questions had a strong majority agreeing with each other, include:

• 74% agreed that the combined ratio of policies will be higher this year.
• Industry capacity will increase this year, according to 78% of respondents.
• 72% think that federal government oversight will increase.
• Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) will increase this year, according to 92% of respondents.
• 80% said that cyber insurance is a major growth opportunity for 2015.

The majority of executives surveyed believe that there will be no improvement in profitability for a number of sectors, including personal auto and commercial lines, in 2015. And many also feel that premium growth for 2015 will be flat (46%) compared to last year.

Howoever, the majority of executives also see the next year as beneficial for the economy, with 56% saying that economic growth will continue to accelerate as it has in the past year.