AM Best Revises Issuer Credit Rating Outlook to Negative for The Baltimore Life Insurance Company

OLDWICK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AM Best has revised the outlook to negative from stable for the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of B++ (Good) and the Long-Term ICR of “bbb+” (Good) of The Baltimore Life Insurance Company (BLIC) (Owings Mills, MD). The outlook of the FSR is stable.

The Credit Ratings (ratings) reflect BLIC’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.

The revision of the Long-Term ICR outlook to negative from stable reflects a trend of declining balance sheet strength metrics over the past five-year period, driven by operating losses, unrealized losses in the investment portfolio and changes in non-admitted assets. Capital and surplus has declined each year since it peaked in 2020, with risk-adjusted capital, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), following suit. The company’s capital and surplus to liabilities ratio lags the industry average and has trended downward in recent years. Partially offsetting these factors are a high-quality investment portfolio, a high degree of liquidity and a lack of leverage in the capital structure.

Operating losses have contributed to the decline in capital and surplus. BLIC has generated strong direct premium growth over the past few quarters, which has resulted in a high degree of new business strain. Management has taken action to manage the strain, including implementing cost control measures, adjusting product pricing and increased reinsurance support. These changes are expected to improve the company’s earnings profile in the near to medium term.

This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM Best’s website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please see AM Best’s Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Guide to Best's Credit Ratings. For information on the proper use of Best’s Credit Ratings, Best’s Performance Assessments, Best’s Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Best’s Ratings & Assessments.

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

Copyright © 2026 by A.M. Best Rating Services, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.