Ratings agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) has lowered its ratings on The Netherlands-based Hampden Insurance, citing a significant deterioration in the company's capital and its weak operating performance.
Ratings agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) has lowered its counterparty credit and insurer financial strength ratings on The Netherlands-based Hampden Insurance, citing a significant deterioration in the company's capital and its weak operating performance.
Hampden's rating was lowered to B-minus from BBB, at the request of the company's management. At the same time, the ratings were removed from CreditWatch, where they were placed on 1 February 2001. The outlook is stable.
As a result of the downgrade, the company is no longer subject to continuous surveillance by S&P.
Hampden Insurance was created in late November 2001, after Hampden PLC's acquisition of Sampo Industrial Insurance (SII).
The insurer intends to write all new and renewal business in a new Lloyd's syndicate. S&P said SII's existing liabilities remained with Hampden Insurance and were in run-off.
At the time of the acquisition, Hampden said that the existing SII portfolio was in orderly run-off and no new business or renewals were being accommodated.
It said SII's clients would be offered the chance to renew their policies with the new syndicate as soon as it was approved.
The company operated mainly in the property, business interruption, and engineering insurance sectors in Germany, the UK, and the Benelux countries.
