Sheffield Earns ‘A’ From S&P

S&P assigned its “A” financial strength rating to Sheffield Insurance Corp., a writer of specialty insurance, based on its integration into the business plan of its parent, experienced management, appropriate reinsurance and capital, and financial profile. Also affirmed were the “A” ratings on all of the currently interactively rated insurer units of Axis Capital Holdings Ltd. The outlook on Axis is stable. Sheffield was recently acquired by Axis Specialty U.S. Holdings Inc., an indirect subsidiary of Axis. Axis is a Bermuda-based holding company formed early this year that has global reinsurance and specialty insurance subsidiaries.

Sheffield will be renamed Axis Surplus Insurance Co. and will operate solely as a carrier of non-admitted business in the U.S. Business written includes property, umbrella and excess casualty, primary casualty, and professional lines insurance. Although Sheffield has an underwriting history that predates the acquisition by Axis, most of its outstanding exposure is either newly acquired through the purchase of the D&O insurance renewal rights from insurers of Kemper Corp. or is business recently written.

S&P expects that the company’s exposure at year-end 2003 will be well in excess of what it is today as management exercises these renewal rights.

Topics Excess Surplus