A.M. Best Upgrades Ratings of Bristol West Insurance Group.OLDWICK, N.J. -- A.M. Best Co. has upgraded the financial strength rating to A- (Excellent) from B++ (Very Good) and the issuer credit ratings (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. ) to "a-" from "bbb+" of Coast National Insurance Company (California), Bristol West Insurance Company (Pennsylvania), Bristol West Casualty Insurance Company (Ohio) and Security National Insurance Company (Florida), all members of the Bristol West Insurance Group (Bristol West) (Davie, FL). Concurrently, A.M. Best has upgraded the ICR to "bbb-" from "bb+" of Bristol West Holdings, Inc., the publicly-traded holding company (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange : BRW BRW Business Review Weekly (business magazine; Melbourne, Victoria, Australia) BRW Business Report Writer BRW Barrow, AK, USA - Barrow (Airport Code) BRW Business Requirement Worksheet ). The outlook for all ratings is stable. The rating upgrades reflect Bristol West's enhanced capitalization and favorable overall operating performance in recent years. Improvement in the group's surplus position has been driven by operating earnings Operating Earnings Profits after subtracting expenses such as marketing, cost of goods sold, administration and general operating costs from revenue. Notes: Tax and interest expenses are not subtracted - operating earnings are synonymous with EBIT (earnings before . The group's operating profitability is attributed to management's disciplined 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. approach, product line expertise and utilization of sophisticated technologies within the pricing, risk selection and claims handling processes. The rating upgrades also consider the significant investments made in technology to improve risk segmentation, refine pricing, enhance loss reserve monitoring and provide better service to producers and customers. As a result of these initiatives and generally favorable market conditions, operating profits Operating profit (or loss) Revenue from a firm's regular activities less costs and expenses and before income deductions. operating profit See operating income. have been reported in each of the past three years. Bristol West provides non-standard private passenger automobile insurance in 21 states, with California comprising approximately 50% of its direct premiums written. Business, which is marketed through independent producers, is produced by affiliated general agencies. For Best's Ratings Best's rating A rating A.M. Best Co. assigns to insurance companies based on the company's ability to meet its obligations to its policyholders. , an overview of the rating process and rating methodologies, please visit www.ambest.com/ratings. For current Best's Ratings, independent data and analysis on more than 3,000 individual property/casualty companies and A.M. Best groups, please visit www.ambest.com/pc. 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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