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September 30, 2008

S&P Lowers Liberty Mutual Rating to A- Post SAFECO Acquistion, Liberty Mutual Responds

When one company acquires a "safeco" your first inclination is that this is a good thing.

Purportedly under pressure over its reaction time in the current financial crisis apparently Standard & Poors doesn't feel that way. Last week Standard & Poors lowered its ratings of the Liberty Mutual group of companies from A(Excellent) to A-(Excellent).

Liberty Mutual issued this immediate response to the Standard & Poors action.

Liberty Mutual is the 6th largest P&C insurance company in the United States and has been in business since the year the Titanic sank, 1912, survived 2 World Wars and expanded during The Great Depression to become the leading  writer of worker's compensation insurance by 1936. In addition to the SAFECO acquisition, in the past decade Liberty has acquired the personal lines P&C arms of Prudential Financial in 47 states, One Beacon, MetLife's Spanish The company has extensive international operations in London,  Spain, Turkey, Vietnam, China, Colombia, Venezuela, Singapore, Hong Long, Phillipines. Its life insurance arm that issues structured settlement annuities, Liberty Life Assurance Company of Boston was established in 1964. Its structured settlement program was the first to offer an international non qualified assignment facility through BARCO Assignments, Ltd.

Posted at 09:29 AM in Barco Assignments, Ltd., Insurance Company News, Liberty Life Assurance Company of Boston, Liberty Mutual, S&P Ratings, Standard & Poors Ratings, Structured Settlement Annuity, Structured Settlement Industry News, Workers Comp Structured Settlements |

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Guide to Structured Settlements 2024

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  • History of Structured Settlements
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Qualified Settlement Funds

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  • Firmwide Qualified Settlement Funds Debunked
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Structured Settlement Best Practices Corner

  • New York Insurance Advertising law requires the full name of the Insurer to be listed along with the city and state of the principal office. Stating that you represent these fine companies using Insurance company logos without the preceding information are also illegal
  • When it comes to settlement documents it is the ultimate responsibility of the lawyers or claims adjusters who receive input concerning the structured settlement aspects of the documents to actually read the entire document, exercise independent thought and advise their clients properly
  • Be aware that financial advisors use of testimonials is prohibited or restricted
  • Most states require that Testimonials represent the CURRENT opinion of the person who made the testimonial. Be prepared to back it up.
  • Number of States That Prohibit Payment of QSF expenses by licensed agents and brokers
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Why Take a Structured Settlement?

  • A structured settlement offers guaranteed financial security to personal injury victims, wrongful death survivors and their families. A structured settlement involves a customized stream of payments, provides long-term stable tax-free income, for a period of years or a lifetime. Unlike other income annuities. a structured settlement annuity can have multiple payment streams to address multiple needs in a single contract.

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