ProAssurance Corp. reported first-quarter net income of $137 million, compared with $21 million for the same 2005 period.
The gain for the Birmingham, Ala.-based property-casualty insurer stemmed primarily from the sale of the company's personal lines insurer, the MEENIC Insurance Company, which resulted in $109 million income gain from discontinued operations.
The nation's fourth largest writer of medical professional liability insurance reported an 11.5 percent increase of gross premiums written on a year-over-year basis, driven primarily by the company's addition of medical malpractice writer NCRIC Inc.
The combined ratio for the quarter fell to 96.6 from 102.7 in the year-ago period.
“With our rates at what we believe to be adequate levels, our need for additional rate increases has lessened,” said a company spokesman.
In the quarter, premiums on renewing policies averaged 5 percent higher, he added.
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