North American Casualty Co. Accorded A- Rating by AM Best

While Company's financial stability hits consistently highest levels, raters' evaluation descries three-and-a-half-year stalemate

OMAHA, Neb., Jan. 9, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Insurance rating agency, AM Best, today will assign an A- rating to the North American Casualty insurance companies despite the Company's continued, longstanding, stellar A++ level of financial stability and assets. The rating is seen by the Company's leaders not as a reflection of solid financial strength or operating performance, but instead of dismay at the slow resolution of the Company's over three-and-a-half-year-long conflict with the California Department of Insurance (CDI), a circumstantial consideration not essential to the Company's well-recognized excellence in claims, governance and financial management.

According to the Company's Founder and Chairman, Steve Menzies, the position of the rating company is somewhat understandable given that we have come to the end of another calendar year with the inertia that the CDI has placed in the path of resolving the longstanding conflict blocking the Company from relocating out of California to New Mexico: "The rating, while hardly a bad one, is not grading us on our exceptional financial strength and performance, but references, instead, the cloud of indecision, dallying and vindictive bureaucratic handcuffing of our Company by the CDI bureaucracy. AM Best needs to reflect that reality in its overall assessment and did so, but it surely could not footnote the shameful narrative that chronicles the CDI's actions and, lately, its bald-faced obstructionism. We are optimistic, with good reason, that State Court hearings taking place within the next 60 days will settle the matter once and for all. Once resolved, AM Best may then base its ratings on our financial strength of A+ as it would be if it were not for the CDI's irrational, exotic imposition of a Conservation on one of our companies in 2019. Meanwhile, we are pleased that our brokers and other business partners have kept abreast of all of the facts and have increased their loyalty to us, as our revenues and financial picture present clearly. We respect the AM Best decision, given its non-financial emphasis."

According to Mr. Jeffrey Silver, Esq., Executive Vice President and General Counsel of the Company, the fact that the Conservation was an unusual, misapplied use of that instrument upon the California Insurance Company is actually underlined by the small rating change: "When the CDI imposed this ridiculous, vindictive Conservation upon us and moved to stop our plans to relocate from California to New Mexico, we were in the same strong financial position as we are now, but the CDI wanted to find a way to intercede in our operations, wasting money in lawsuit settlements and the like to punish us arbitrarily and take unfair advantage of our financial strength. The lingering conflict with the CDI has to have been acknowledged in some way by the raters, we understand that, but the utter abuse of the Conservation process—created and used by regulators for Companies that are in deep financial trouble—has attracted national attention and the involvement of New Mexico's attorney general and other states' regulators. It will not stand, in our view, once we get our day in court after all the obstructions the CDI has placed in the path of that day are clear. The raters will follow with their customarily fair approach. We look forward to it."

For further information contact: Ryan Gerding, Public Relations, at +1 (913) 602-8531 or at press@auw.com.

Applied Underwriters^® is a global risk services firm that helps businesses and people manage uncertainty through its business services, insurance and reinsurance solutions. As a company, Applied Underwriters has been distinguished by its innovative approaches to client care and by its strong financial strength. Applied Underwriters operates widely throughout the US, UK, EU and Middle East. Its operational headquarters is located in Omaha, Nebraska. 

Ratings issuer AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of 'A-' (Excellent) and Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings of 'a-' of companies collectively referred to as North American Casualty Group (NAC). The companies with the affirmed ratings are: California Insurance Company, Continental Indemnity Company, Illinois Insurance Company and Pennsylvania Insurance Company, domiciled in New Mexico; Texas Insurance Company, domiciled in Texas; Oklahoma Property and Casualty Insurance Company, domiciled in Oklahoma; and Florida Casualty Insurance Company, domiciled in Florida.

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.

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SOURCE Applied Underwriters