A++ and A+

(Superior)  Assigned to companies that have, in our opinion, a superior ability to meet their ongoing obligations to policyholders.

A and A-

(Excellent)  Assigned to companies that have, in our opinion, an excellent ability to meet their ongoing obligations to policyholders.

B++ and B+

(Very Good)  Assigned to companies that have, in our opinion, a good ability to meet their ongoing obligations to policyholders.

B and B-

(Fair)  Assigned to companies that have, in our opinion, a fair ability to meet their current obligations to policyholders, but are financially vulnerable to adverse changes in underwriting and economic conditions.

C++ and C+

(Marginal)  Assigned to companies that have, in our opinion, a marginal ability to meet their current obligations to policyholders, but are financially vulnerable to adverse changes in underwriting and economic conditions.

C and C-

(Weak)  Assigned to companies that have, in our opinion, a weak ability to meet their current obligations to policyholders, but are financially very vulnerable to adverse changes in underwriting and economic conditions.

D

(Poor)  Assigned to companies that, in our opinion, may not have an ability to meet their current obligations to policyholders and are financially extremely vulnerable to adverse changes in underwriting and economic conditions.

E

(Under Regulatory Supervision)  Assigned to companies that have been placed by an insurance regulatory authority under a significant form of supervision, control or restraint, whereby they are no longer allowed to conduct normal ongoing insurance operations.  This would include conservatorship or rehabilitation, but does not include liquidation.  It may also be assigned to companies issued cease and desist orders by regulators outside their home state or country.

F

(In Liquidation)  Assigned to companies that have been placed under an order of liquidation by a court of law or whose owners have voluntarily agreed to liquidate the company.

S

(Rating Suspended)  Assigned to rated companies that have experienced sudden and significant events affecting their balance sheet strength or operating performance whose rating implications cannot be evaluated due to a lack of timely or adequate information.

NR-1

(Insufficient Data)  Assigned predominately to small companies for which A.M. Best does not have sufficient financial information required to assign rating opinions.

NR-2

(Insufficient Size and/or Operating Experience)  Assigned to companies that do not meet A.M. Best’s minimum size and/or operating experience requirements.

NR-3

(Rating Procedure Inapplicable)  Assigned to companies that are not rated by A.M. Best, because our normal rating procedures do not apply due to a company’s unique or unusual business features.

NR-4

(Company Request)  Assigned to companies that were assigned a Best’s Rating but request that their ratings not be published because the companies disagree with Best’s rating conclusion.

NR-5

(Not Formally Followed)  Assigned to insurers that request not to be formally evaluated for purposed of assigning a rating opinion.

AAA

EXTREMELY STRONG financial security characteristics. 'AAA' is the highest Insurer Financial Strength Rating assigned by Standard & Poor's.

AA

VERY STRONG financial security characteristics, differing only slightly from those rated higher.

A

STRONG financial security characteristics, but is somewhat more likely to be affected by adverse business conditions than are insurers with higher ratings.

BBB 

GOOD financial security characteristics, but is more likely to be affected by adverse business conditions than are higher rated insurers.  

BB

MARGINAL financial security characteristics. Positive attributes exist, but adverse business conditions could lead to insufficient ability to meet financial commitments.

B

WEAK financial security characteristics. Adverse business conditions will likely impair its ability to meet financial commitments.

CCC

VERY WEAK financial security characteristics, and is dependent on favorable business conditions to meet financial commitments.

CC

EXTREMELY WEAK financial security characteristics and is likely not to meet some of its financial commitments.

R  

Under REGULATORY SUPERVISION owing to its financial condition. During the pendency of the regulatory supervision, the regulators may have the power to favor one class of obligations over others or pay some obligations and not others. The rating does not apply to insurer’s subject only to nonfinancial actions such as market conduct violations.

NR

NOT RATED, which implies no opinion about the insurer's financial security.

Plus (+)
or
minus (-)

Signs following ratings from 'AA' to 'CCC' show relative standing within the major rating categories.

'Pi' Ratings

Insurer Financial Strength Ratings based on an analysis of published financial information and additional information in the public domain. They do not reflect in-depth meetings with an insurer's management and are therefore based on less comprehensive information than ratings without a 'pi' subscript.

Credit
Watch

Highlights the potential direction of a rating, focusing on identifiable events and short-term trends that cause ratings to be placed under special surveillance by Standard & Poor's.

National Scale Ratings

Denoted with a prefix such as 'mx' (Mexico) or 'ra' (Argentina), assess an insurer's financial security relative to other insurers in its home market.

A

Excellent. The company offers excellent financial security. It has maintained a conservative stance in its investment strategies, business operations and underwriting commitments. While the financial position of any company is subject to change, we believe that this company has the resources necessary to deal with severe economic conditions.

B

Good. The company offers good financial security and has the resources to deal with a variety of adverse economic conditions. It comfortably exceeds the minimum levels for all of our rating criteria, and is likely to remain healthy for the near future. However, in the event of a severe recession or major financial crisis, we feel that this assessment should be reviewed to make sure that the firm is still maintaining adequate financial strength.

C

Fair. The company offers fair financial security and is currently stable. But during an economic downturn or other financial pressures, we feel it may encounter difficulties in maintaining its financial stability.

D

Weak. The company currently demonstrates what we consider to be significant weaknesses which could negatively impact policyholders. In an unfavorable economic environment, these weaknesses could be magnified.

E

Very Weak. The company currently demonstrates what we consider to be significant weaknesses and has also failed some of the basic tests that we use to identify fiscal stability. Therefore, even in a favorable economic environment, it is our opinion that policyholders could incur significant risks.

F

Failed. The company has failed and is either 1) under supervision of state insurance commissioners; 2) is in the process of liquidation; or 3) has voluntarily dissolved after disciplinary or other regulatory action by state insurance commissioners.

+

The plus sign is an indication that the company is at the upper end of the letter grade rating.

–

The minus sign is an indication that the company is at the lower end of the letter grade rating.

U

Unrated Companies. The company is unrated for one or more of the following reasons: (1) total assets are less than $1 million; (2) premium income for the current year was less than $100,000; or (3) the company functions almost exclusively as a holding company rather than as an underwriter; or (4) we do not have enough information to reliably issue a rating.