AM Best Affirms Credit Ratings of Crum & Forster Insurance Group’s Members and Monitor Life Insurance Company of New York

OLDWICK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term ICRs) of “a” (Excellent) of the members of Crum & Forster Insurance Group (C&F). Concurrently, AM Best has affirmed the FSR of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term ICRs of “a” (Excellent) of Monitor Life Insurance Company of New York (Monitor Life) (New York, NY). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable. (See below for a detailed listing of the companies.)

The ratings of C&F reflect its balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management (ERM). The ratings also reflect the benefits the group derives from its role within the larger Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited (Fairfax) enterprise.

The ratings of Monitor Life reflect its balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate ERM, as well as the financial support and strategic importance to its parent, United States Fire Insurance Company, part of C&F.

C&F’s rating affirmations reflect the group’s continued stabilization of underwriting and operating results in recent years. This improvement is a result of the group’s expansion of accident and health (A&H) lines of business, as well as surplus and specialty, which have all produced strong underlying results for the group. While the initial expansion efforts placed pressure on C&F’s risk-adjusted capitalization, the impact was mitigated by capital contributions from the parent organization, Fairfax. As the business has seasoned, the performance has become accretive to surplus and allowed C&F to pay dividends to Fairfax at year-end 2021 and first-quarter 2022.

Monitor Life’s operating results have remained near breakeven as the company produces modest amounts of direct written business. Growth is expected in the near term as the company builds scale. Monitor Life currently has a limited portfolio of group A&H products with licenses in 48 states and the District of Columbia, with plans to license the remaining two states and expand its product portfolio. Additionally, products will be distributed through the C&F nationwide distribution network. Monitor Life’s ERM program is coordinated by the parent organization.

The FSR of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term ICRs of “a” (Excellent) have been affirmed with stable outlooks for the following members of Crum & Forster Insurance Group:

• Crum & Forster Indemnity Company
• Crum and Forster Insurance Company
• The North River Insurance Company
• United States Fire Insurance Company
• Crum & Forster Specialty Insurance Company
• First Mercury Insurance Company
• American Underwriters Insurance Company
• Seneca Insurance Company, Inc.
• Crum & Forster SPC
• Seneca Specialty Insurance Company

This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM Best’s website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please see AM Best’s Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Guide to Best's Credit Ratings. For information on the proper use of Best’s Credit Ratings, Best’s Performance Assessments, Best’s Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Best’s Ratings & Assessments.

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

Copyright © 2022 by A.M. Best Rating Services, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

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Dan Hofmeister, CFA, FRM, CAIA, CPCU

Senior Financial Analyst

+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5385

[email protected]

Christopher Sharkey
Manager, Public Relations

+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5159

[email protected]

Jeffrey Lane

Senior Financial Analyst

+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5567

[email protected]

Jeff Mango
Managing Director,

Strategy Communications

+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5204

[email protected]

Source: AM Best