Royal & SunAlliance received a boost after Standard & Poor’s (S&P) raised the insurer’s financial strength rating to ‘A’ from ‘A-’.
The rating agency agency said it increased the insurer’s rating because of its confidence in the group’s underwriting cycle manage-ment and its ability to produce consistently positive earnings.
S&P said it had a positive opinion about R&SA’s management and corporate strategy. The group also had a strong competitive position.
However, the rating agency said these positive factors were partly offset by R&SA’s capitalisation and financial flexibility that, despite improvement, were not yet consistent with the new rating level.
S&P said: “We expect R&SA’s management to remain committed to its strategy of sustainable profitable performance, underpinned by its strong enterprise risk management, and will continue to produce combined operating ratios in the mid-90s.”
The rating agency said it expected the insurer’s net combined ratio for 2008 to be 98% or better.
Hosted by comedian and actor Tom Allen, 34 Gold, 23 Silver and 22 Bronze awards were handed out across an amazing 34 categories recognising brilliance and innovation right across the breadth of UK general insurance.
