A.M. Best Affirms Ratings of Assurant; Assigns Issuer Credit Ratings.

OLDWICK, N.J. -- A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength ratings of A (Excellent) and A- (Excellent) of Assurant, Inc.'s (Assurant) (NYSE:AIZ) (New York, NY) subsidiaries. In addition, A.M. Best has assigned issuer credit ratings (ICR) of "a" and "a-" to Assurant's subsidiaries and has affirmed the ICR of "bbb" of Assurant. All ratings have a stable outlook.

Concurrently, A.M. Best has affirmed the senior debt ratings of "bbb" on Assurant's $500 million 5.625% 10-year and $475 million 6.75% 30-year senior notes. A.M. Best has also affirmed Assurant's commercial paper rating of AMB-2. All debt ratings have a stable outlook. (See link below for a complete list of the ratings.)

The ratings recognize Assurant's diversified specialty insurance operations, strong operating earnings, the role and contribution of each of its members, as well as the capital levels maintained at each of its insurance subsidiaries. Additionally, Assurant's insurance entities can sufficiently support the existing debt servicing obligations of the parent company. Since the initial public offering, the organization's debt-to-capital ratio has been under 22%, with favorable debt service coverage of nearly 10 times.

Assurant is a combination of four distinct businesses, which unto themselves, are comprised of highly specialized niche businesses that are managed. Among them are Assurant Solutions (consumer protection, specialty property and warranty businesses), which is the largest segment within the organization. It is also the market leader in insurance and related products in both the U.S. credit life/health and property/casualty markets. Assurant Health (individual and small group major medical insurance) was a pioneer in health savings accounts, along with being a leading U.S. writer of individual medical insurance. Assurant Employee Benefits (employee benefits products such as dental, group life and disability income) is an established leading writer of numerous insurance products offered through diverse distribution channels, focusing on smaller group sizes. Assurant Preneed (pre-need life insurance) is the largest writer of pre-paid funeral expenses in North America.

While the insurance entities maintain more than adequate capitalization for their respective financial strength ratings, larger dividends have been taken out in the last year partially as a result of Assurant's stock repurchase program. Furthermore, some niche segments will face unique challenges in the near term--Assurant Solutions' exposure to catastrophes; Assurant Health's and Assurant Employee Benefits' ability to maintain current profit margins--along with the prolonged low interest rate environment, which continues to hamper the corporate investment yields, particularly the pre-need and long-term disability product lines. However, all businesses face increasing competitive pressures from both regional and national players.

For a complete list of Assurant Inc.'s financial strength, issuer credit and debt ratings, please visit http://www.ambest.com/press/062112assurant.pdf.

For Best's Debt Ratings, all other Best's Ratings, an overview of the rating process and rating methodologies, please visit http://www.ambest.com/ratings.

A.M. Best Co., established in 1899, is the world's oldest and most authoritative insurance rating and information source. For more information, visit A.M. Best's Web site at http://www.ambest.com.