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The Knights of Columbus disclosed today that it has once again received the highest financial strength rating from the A.M. Best Co. The A++ (Superior) rating was assigned to the 122-year-old Catholic life insurer following an intensive review of the Knights of Columbus overall life insurance program, its products, investments and asset management performance. It is the 29th consecutive year the Knights has earned the top rating from A.M. Best, the nation's leading insurance rating agency.
A.M. Best's top rating comes on the heels of a recent announcement by the Knights that it had passed the $50 billion milestone of insurance in force. Currently, the Catholic fraternal organization insures the lives of more than 1.2 million men, women and children among its nearly 1.7 million members throughout North America.
In its ratings rationale, A.M. Best cited the Knights' "strong market presence" among Catholics and the sophisticated distribution network linking 1,400 professional general and field agents and the organization’s approximately 12,600 councils. This network, according to A.M. Best, "builds a bond of loyalty" to the Knights.
The organization's "large membership base and track record of continued growth" were also cited by A.M. Best, as well as the Knights' "ability to maintain its relatively high dividend scale."
In addition to this optimum rating, the Knights enjoys an AAA (Superior) rating from Standard & Poor's and carries the coveted Insurance Marketplace Standards Association (IMSA) seal of approval for ethical marketing, sales and best practices. It is among only six North American life insurance carriers that have achieved all three of these distinctions.
Sale of insurance has been a part of the organization's service since its founding in New Haven in 1882 by Father Michael J. McGivney, a 29-year-old Catholic priest who is under consideration for sainthood by the Vatican. Best known for its charitable activities, the Knights donated $1 million last year to Special Olympics to send athletes from the United States, Canada and Mexico to the international Summer Games. Last year, the Knights also provided 2,000 wheelchairs to land-mine victims and people with disabilities in Afghanistan. In 2002, members reported raising and contributing a record $128.5 million and volunteering a record 60.8 million hours of service to local communities.
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