AM Best Upgrades Credit Ratings of Forge Insurance Company

Business Wire

OLDWICK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
AM Best has upgraded the Financial Strength Rating to A- (Excellent) from B++ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating to “a-” (Excellent) from “bbb+” (Good) of Forge Insurance Company (Forge) (Bethesda, MD). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) has been revised to stable from positive.

The ratings reflect Forge’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.

The rating upgrades reflect Forge’s continuing improvement in its operating results since its strategic pivot in 2022 to focus on expanding into lower-risk small business segment of the commercial auto business. Forge reported loss ratios that were much lower than its commercial auto peers in 2022 - 2024. Expense ratios, which currently remain elevated, have decreased considerably from prior years, and are projected to decrease further in the coming years as Forge ramps up its premium writings while benefiting from scale and past investment in distribution and technology. The share of small business in Forge’s business mix has increased significantly in policy count and premium volume in recent years.

The stable outlooks reflect AM Best’s expectation that Forge will continue to execute its strategic plans with manageable deviations and the company’s underwriting and overall results will continue to improve and stabilize as its business mix gradually moves toward lower-risk vehicle classes in more favorable geographic locations. Further, AM Best expects the company will maintain balance sheet strength in the very strong range over the intermediate term.

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.