Lloyd's Best Rating Affirmed

NU Online News Service, July 18, 3:24 p.m. EDT?A.M. Best has affirmed the "A-Minus" (Excellent) financial strength rating for Lloyd's of London, and cited several positive developments at the company.

Best noted what it said was Lloyd's "excellent business profile and capitalization, improving performance, stable investment returns, and enhanced standards of risk management."

The outlook for Lloyd's rating remains "Stable," the Oldwick, N.J.-based rating agency added.

Commenting on Lloyd's business profile, Best noted that the company strengthened its ties with the United States, its main market, last year by boosting its U.S. surplus-lines premium income by 21 percent to some $4.1 billion.

The company also had significant premium growth in Europe, Best pointed out. The rating agency said Lloyd's overall gross premiums written in continental Europe jumped to $2.9 billion in 2002, from $2.2 billion posted one year earlier.

Additionally, Best said Lloyd's prospective capitalization would remain "excellent." It cited the fact that "Lloyd's total financial resources increased 23 percent in 2002 to $43.3 billion, including an increase of nearly 46 percent in net Central Fund assets to $764 million."

Lloyd's loss ratio is also improving--its 2002 net incurred loss ratio after 15 months, the ratings agency pointed out, was 22 percent, down significantly from 44 percent one year earlier, Best said.