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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
OLDWICK - JANUARY 27, 2023 04:26 PM (EST)
AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B++ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “bbb” (Good) of St. Charles Insurance Company Risk Retention Group (St. Charles) (Charleston, SC). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable. Concurrently, AM Best has withdrawn these ratings as the company has requested to no longer participate in AM Best’s interactive rating process.
The ratings reflect St. Charles’ balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, very limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
St. Charles’ surplus size and insurance capacity were significantly reduced in 2021, due to a stockholder dividend that was paid to the parent. This came on the heels of management’s decision to discontinue writing new contract liability business in the risk retention group and place its existing policies into runoff.
The stable rating outlooks reflect AM Best’s expectation that the company will maintain solid risk-adjusted capitalization with adequate operating results, which are supported by modest levels of net investment income as the company operates through the runoff of its remaining service contract liabilities.
This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM Best’s website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please see AM Best’s Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Guide to Best’s Credit Ratings. For information on the proper use of Best’s Credit Ratings, Best’s Performance Assessments, Best’s Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Best’s Ratings & Assessments.
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.