AM Best Affirms Credit Ratings of Members of Nodak Insurance Group and NI Holdings, Inc.
10 Mayo 2024 - 4:04PM
Business Wire
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 members of Nodak Insurance Group
(Nodak). The outlook of the FSR is stable while the outlook of the
Long-Term ICR is negative. Concurrently, AM Best has affirmed the
Long-Term ICR of “bbb+” (Good) of NI Holdings, Inc. (Fargo, ND)
[NASDAQ: NODK], a publicly traded holding company. The outlook of
this Credit Rating (rating) is negative. (See below for a full
listing of companies and ratings.)
The ratings reflect Nodak’s balance sheet strength, which AM
Best assesses as very strong, as well as its strong operating
performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise
risk management.
Nodak’s operating results in 2023, while still volatile, showed
improvement from the prior year given more favorable loss ratios in
its core lines of business (i.e., personal auto, homeowners and
farmowners). Overall results were dampened by elevated losses
stemming from Westminster American Insurance Company’s (WAIC)
commercial habitational line of business and continued inflationary
pressures on property lines, as well as adverse reserve development
driven by prior-year auto liability claims. Still, the group
reported net income and growth in policyholders’ surplus. Results
have improved further through year-to-date 2024. The negative
outlook on the Long-Term ICR reflects AM Best’s expectation that if
the recent improvement does not continue, it could lead to a
downward revision in the group’s operating performance building
block assessment.
To foster continued improvement in the group’s results, Nodak
has implemented sizable rate increases, refined its risk appetite
and tightened its underwriting standards on major lines of
business. Furthermore, NI Holdings, Inc., has recently announced
that a definitive agreement has been signed to sell WAIC to a
private party. The agreement has been approved by NI Holdings,
Inc.’s board of directors and is pending regulatory approval and
subject to customary closing conditions. Following successful
execution of the agreement, WAIC will no longer be affiliated with
Nodak and will be removed from the pool. This is expected to
eliminate Nodak’s exposure in East Coast states and greatly reduce
its exposure in the commercial habitational line of business, which
in turn should favorably impact pooled results.
The FSR of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term ICRs of “a+”
(Excellent) have been affirmed, with a stable outlook for the FSR
and a negative outlook for the Long-Term ICRs, for the following
members of the Nodak Insurance Group:
- American West Insurance Company
- Battle Creek Insurance Company
- Direct Auto Insurance Company
- Nodak Insurance Company
- Primero 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, 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. For more
information, visit www.ambest.com.
Copyright © 2024 by A.M. Best Rating
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Lauren Magro Financial Analyst +1 908 882 2082
lauren.magro@ambest.com
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Relations +1 908 882 2310
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