T&T’s first locally-owned insurance company has been given high marks by a leading international ratings agency. AM Best has affirmed the financial strength rating of A- (excellent) and issuer credit rating of “a-” of Trinidad & Tobago Insurance Ltd (Tatil). The outlook for both ratings is stable.
AM Best stated that the ratings reflected Tatil’s historically profitable operating performance, solid capitalisation and the support the company receives from its ultimate parent, ANSA McAL Ltd (AMCL), one of the largest diversified companies in the Caribbean and publicly-traded on the T&T Stock Exchange.
The insurance rating agency described Tatil’s underwriting philosophy as “prudent,” noting that its conservative risk management strategies historically have resulted in favorable underwriting results. This, said AM Best, had enabled the company to record consistent overall earnings in recent years, while enhancing its risk-adjusted capitalisation.
Tatil became a part of AMCL’s financial services portfolio in 2004 when it merged with ANSA Merchant Bank Ltd. Seven years later, this still continues to bear fruit as AM Best pointed to Tatil as an important strategic focus within AMCL’s financial services segment.
As a result, AM Best noted, Tatil benefits from group synergies, along with access to AMCL’s considerable resources, including information technology, financial and investment management services.
However, AM Best cautioned that there were risks partially offsetting these positive rating factors. The ratings agency expressed concern that all of Tatil’s business was concentrated within T&T. It suggested that this geographic concentration could pose challenges for the insurer in maintaining its overall earnings and market share in extremely competitive markets.
As with all insurance companies, the potential impact from exposure to catastrophic events remains a very real risk and AM Best also cited this as a mitigating factor in its rating analysis. (Caribbean360)
Trinidad Guardian
November 04, 2011
