A.M. Best Upgrades Issuer Credit Ratings of Employers Mutual Casualty Company and Certain Subsidiaries

A.M. Best has upgraded the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term ICR) to “a+” from “a” and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of A (Excellent) of Employers Mutual Casualty Company (EMCC) and its five property/casualty (P/C) subsidiaries (collectively referred to as EMC Insurance Companies), which operate under an inter-company pooling agreement led by EMCC. In addition, A.M. Best has affirmed the FSR of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term ICR of “a” of EMCC’s separately rated, indirectly owned subsidiary, EMC Reinsurance Company (EMC Re). Furthermore, A.M. Best has affirmed the FSR of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term ICR of “a-” of EMC National Life Company (EMCNL). Concurrently, A.M. Best has upgraded the Long-Term ICR to “bbb+” from “bbb” of EMC Insurance Group Inc. (EMCI) [NAS:EMCI], a downstream holding company majority owned by EMCC. The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable. All of the EMC entities are domiciled in Des Moines, IA, except for Dakota Fire Insurance Company, which is domiciled in Bismarck, ND. (See below for a detailed listing of the companies.)

The ratings of EMC Insurance Companies reflect its balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as strongest, as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management (ERM).

The Long-Term ICR upgrades are based on the group’s sustained improvement in its overall operations, strong capital formation and its robust level of risk-adjusted capitalization, which also considers the group’s consistently favorable loss reserve development. The group has taken action in recent years to improve pricing and risk selection, claims management and reserving methodology. It has developed and implemented predictive modeling tools and sophisticated monitoring systems as part of its overall risk management program, which have resulted in an improved ability to differentiate and monitor risk concentrations and to quantify and track the quality of business over time. These tools are leveraged by the group’s extensive network of brand offices and supported by long-standing agency relationships. These enhancements also were designed to enable management to more effectively manage the group’s business through market cycles.