Amwest Downgraded

Following the release of third-quarter earnings and a formal review of the financial position through September 2000 of the Amwest Insurance Group, the company’s FSR was downgraded from “B” to “C-” by A.M. Best. The rating action is applicable to Amwest Surety Insurance Company and its subsidiary Far West Insurance Company. The company was previously downgraded to “B,” in the vulnerable category, last August.