AM Best Affirms Credit Ratings of United Fire Group, Inc. and Its Property/Casualty Subsidiaries
- September 18, 2026 10:14 AM (EDT)
//BestWire// - AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term ICR) of “a-” (Excellent) of the property/casualty (P/C) subsidiaries of United Fire Group, Inc. (UFG) [NASDAQ: UFCS] (collectively known as United Fire & Casualty Group), which operate under an intercompany pooling agreement led by United Fire & Casualty Company. Concurrently, AM Best has affirmed the Long-Term ICR of “bbb-” (Good) of UFG and the Long-Term Issue Credit Rating of “bbb-” (Good) on UFG’s $100 million, 9% senior unsecured notes due 2039. The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable. All companies are headquartered in Cedar Rapids, IA. (See below for a detailed listing of the companies and ratings.)
The ratings reflect United Fire & Casualty Group’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its marginal operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
United Fire & Casualty Group’s risk-adjusted capitalization has improved in recent years following capital contributions from the holding company, combined with organic growth in surplus driven by pre-tax operating earnings, and stabilization in the carried reserve position that has resulted in favorable reserve development when viewed in the aggregate. Improved operating results reflect a return to underwriting income in 2025 following management initiatives in recent years focused on restoring profitability while developing a durable underwriting platform that can sustain performance across market cycles. Recent results also have benefited from natural catastrophe losses occurring at lower-than-historical averages in recent years along with prudent rate actions. The ratings also reflect the group’s well-established position within core markets that provide diversification of product offerings within commercial lines. The group benefits from its solid regional franchise, local market knowledge and long-standing agency relationships.
While the group faces competitive market conditions and the insured footprint remains exposed to natural catastrophe events, the stable outlooks reflect AM Best’s expectation that operating performance and balance sheet strength metrics over the near term will be in line with recently reported results.
UFG’s Long-Term ICR recognizes the capital strength of its operating subsidiaries. Financial leverage and interest coverage at the holding company remain modest.
The FSR of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term ICRs of “a-” (Excellent) have been affirmed with stable outlooks for United Fire & Casualty Company and its following P/C subsidiaries:
- Lafayette Insurance Company
- Addison Insurance Company
- United Fire & Indemnity Company
- United Fire Lloyds
- Mercer Insurance Company
- Financial Pacific Insurance Company
- Mercer Insurance Company of New Jersey, Inc.
- Franklin Insurance Company UFG Specialty Insurance Company
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 (BCR), Best’s Performance Assessments (PA), Best’s Preliminary Credit Assessments (PCA) 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.