A.M. Best Affirms Ratings of Brit Insurance Limited and Brit Insurance Holdings PLC.OLDWICK, N.J. -- A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength rating of A (Excellent) and the issuer credit rating (ICR (Intelligent Character Recognition or Image Character Recognition) The machine recognition of hand-printed characters as well as machine printing that is difficult to recognize. ) of "a" of Brit Insurance Limited (BIL BIL Brother-In-Law BIL Billion BIL Bilateral BIL Band Interleaved by Line BIL Basic Impulse Level (electrical power switches) BIL Basic Insulation Level (IEC) ) (United Kingdom). At the same time, A.M. Best has affirmed the ICR of "bbb" of Brit Insurance Holdings PLC (BIH BiH Bosnia and Herzegovina BIH Black Infant Health BIH Bureau International de l'Heure (International Time Bureau) BIH Benign Intracranial Hypertension BiH Bosnia i Herzegovina (ISO country code) ) (United Kingdom), BIL's ultimate parent company. A.M. Best has also affirmed the "bbb-" ratings of the USD USD In currencies, this is the abbreviation for the U.S. Dollar. Notes: The currency market, also known as the Foreign Exchange market, is the largest financial market in the world, with a daily average volume of over US $1 trillion. 15 million floating rate subordinated notes, the GBP GBP In currencies, this is the abbreviation for the British Pound. Notes: The currency market, also known as the Foreign Exchange market, is the largest financial market in the world, with a daily average volume of over US $1 trillion. 19.7 million unsecured loan Unsecured Loan A loan that is issued and supported only by the borrower's creditworthiness, rather than by some sort of collateral. Notes: Generally, a borrower must have a high credit rating to receive an unsecured loan. stock and the GBP 150 million fixed rate subordinated notes issued by BIH. The outlook for all ratings remains stable. BIL's risk-adjusted capitalisation is likely to remain strong in 2007, although weaker than in 2006 due mainly to anticipated premium growth. However, A.M. Best believes that this will be partially offset by strong retained earnings Retained Earnings The percentage of net earnings not paid out in dividends, but retained by the company to be reinvested in its core business or to pay debt. It is recorded under shareholders equity on the balance sheet. . Beyond 2007, BIL's risk-adjusted capitalisation is likely to improve as premium income stabilises and good earnings are maintained. BIL also derives additional financial flexibility from BIH's access to the financial markets. A.M. Best believes that BIL will achieve an excellent combined ratio below the 96% achieved in 2006 (subject to full year catastrophe experience), despite weakening in market conditions for many of BIL's main lines of business. The reserve deterioration in respect of the 2005 U.S. hurricanes, which adversely affected 2006 performance, is not expected to be repeated this year. While BIL has exposure to the 2007 U.K. flooding losses, A.M. Best does not anticipate a significant impact on the company's profitability from these events. BIL's ratings continue to reflect its excellent profile in London and the wider U.K. market. Following an overall decline in gross premium income of 7% in 2006 driven by BIL's withdrawal from the retro market, A.M. Best anticipates strong growth in 2007, largely derived from expansion of existing lines written in its Global Markets business unit. For Best's Debt Ratings, all other Best's Ratings, an overview of the rating process and rating methodologies, please visit www.ambest.com/ratings. Founded in 1899, A.M. Best Company is a global full-service credit rating organization dedicated to serving the financial and health care service industries, including insurance companies, banks, hospitals and health care system providers. For more information, visit www.ambest.com. |
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