Ratings agency Moody's has lowered several key ratings of The St. Paul Companies.
Moody's lowered the ratings of the insurer's fire & marine affiliates to A1 from Aa3, and, lowered the group's senior unsecured debt to A3 from A2. At the same time it lowered the rating for its commercial paper ratings to Prime-2 from Prime-1.
The ratings agency said the downgrades were based on concerns over the impact of St. Paul's runoff and surety lines on future earnings potential.
Moody's added that the runoff risk had arisen partly from medical malpractice and asbestos exposures.
