07/30/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 07/30/2026 12:07
JULY 30, 2026 02:00 PM (EDT)
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
OLDWICK - JULY 30, 2026 02:00 PM (EDT)
AM Best has upgraded the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term ICR) to "bbb+" (Good) from "bbb" (Good) and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B++ (Good) of Bankers Insurance Company (St. Petersburg, FL) and its property/casualty subsidiaries, Bankers Specialty Insurance Company (Metairie, LA) and First Community Insurance Company (St. Petersburg, FL), which are members of Bankers Insurance Group (Bankers). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) has been revised to positive from stable.
The ratings reflect Bankers' balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management (ERM).
The upgrading of the Long-Term ICRs reflects material improvement in Bankers' operating performance metrics over the last three years, which aligns with AM Best's adequate assessment. Operating results have stabilized following the group's strategic exit from its homeowners' business, which had been a primary source of earnings volatility. Bankers' efforts to reshape its risk portfolio combined with continued underwriting and pricing discipline have resulted in meaningful improvement in underwriting results. Prospective operating results are expected to benefit from management's focus on the group's well-performing small commercial book, technology modernization and organizational build-out. While viewed as short term, recent increases in the expense ratio reflect management's investment in talent, technology, product capabilities and operational infrastructure to establish a scalable commercial platform.
The positive outlooks reflect the expectation that Bankers will continue to execute its portfolio optimization efforts through expanded geographic diversification and leveraging non-correlated lines of business. Furthermore, reflective of these efforts, risk-adjusted capitalization is expected to remain at the strongest level, as measured by Best's Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), supported by sustained organic capital growth that will continue to drive improvement in key balance sheet metrics.
Bankers' business profile remains limited, reflective of its concentration in commercial multi-peril business and Florida exposure, albeit the bail and National Flood Insurance Program products have a national footprint. ERM is viewed as appropriate, given the group's multi-layered risk management framework and risk management capabilities, which are properly aligned with its risk profile.
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.