Lumbermens Mutual Casualty Cos. Ratings Affirmed

Standard & Poor’s (S&P) affirmed all outstanding interactive ratings on Lumbermens Mutual Casualty Cos. (the Kemper Insurance Cos., collectively Kemper). The outlook is stable.

According to S&P, Kemper occupies a strong business position as one of the top five players in the workers’ compensation market. Kemper has continued to report weak operating results despite management’s ongoing efforts to realign the book of business to focus on bottom line profitability in recent years. Although some of these efforts are beginning to affect operating performance, statutory earnings will continue to be weak until 2002.

S&P further indicated that Kemper remains committed to maintaining balance sheet strength, customer focus, a strong workers’ compensation franchise, and the implementation of strategic initiatives to broaden the portfolio of commercial lines products to become an effective long-term competitor in an increasingly challenging commercial lines marketplace.