A.M. Best Suspends Rating of International Casualty & Surety.Business Editors OLDWICK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 21, 2000 Effective immediately, A.M. Best Co. has suspended the financial strength rating of International Casualty and Surety An individual who undertakes an obligation to pay a sum of money or to perform some duty or promise for another in the event that person fails to act. surety n. Co. Ltd., New Zealand New Zealand (zē`lənd), island country (2005 est. pop. 4,035,000), 104,454 sq mi (270,534 sq km), in the S Pacific Ocean, over 1,000 mi (1,600 km) SE of Australia. The capital is Wellington; the largest city and leading port is Auckland. . The company had previously been assigned a rating of D (Poor). The rating action is taken due to the failure of the company's representatives to provide A.M. Best with timely or adequate information about International Casualty and Surety's financial position and reinsurance The contract made between an insurance company and a third party to protect the insurance company from losses. The contract provides for the third party to pay for the loss sustained by the insurance company when the company makes a payment on the original contract. program. Prior to the company's acquisition in January 2000, it was under the direction of Sam Love, a shareholder. With a capital base of approximately US$ 8 million, backed by one unrated non-interest bearing investment, the company had been writing a small portfolio of excess and surplus commercial automobile, marine vessel and aviation risks through small brokers in America and London. The D rating, the lowest A.M. Best rating category, is assigned to companies which may not have the ability to meet their current policyholder Policyholder An individual who owns an insurance policy. obligations, and whose financial strength is extremely vulnerable to adverse changes in underwriting Underwriting 1. The process by which investment bankers raise investment capital from investors on behalf of corporations and governments that are issuing securities (both equity and debt). 2. The process of issuing insurance policies. and economic conditions. 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 www.ambest.com. |
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