Trenwick Group Ltd. yesterday said James F. Billett, Jr., its chairman, president and CEO would be taking a leave of absence from his positions at Trenwick for health reasons.

W. Marston Becker, the current vice chairman of the board of directors and a member of Trenwick's board of directors since 1997, will assume the position of acting chairman and acting CEO.

Mr. Becker is currently the chairman of Hales & Company, an insurance industry merchant and investment bank.

Mr. Becker was formerly chairman of the board and CEO of Orion Capital Corporation, a New York Stock Exchange listed specialty insurance company.

Mr. Billett's leave of absence is the latest blow for Trenwick, whose credit and debt ratings have come under pressure this month.

On August 7, Trenwick said it had recorded net income for the second quarter of $3.8 million compared to a net loss of $50.8 million in 2001.

For the first half of the year, Trenwick recorded a net loss of $50.8 million or $1.38 per share compared to a net loss of $31.9 million or $0.87 per share for the first six months of 2001.

On August 19, AM Best placed Trenwick's A- credit rating on review with negative implications.

Best said it was concerned that Trenwick did not have adequate capital to meet both its debt obligations and to pursue its business strategy.

On August 2, Standard & Poor's lowered its counter-party credit ratings on Trenwick Group Ltd. and related holding companies to double-'B' from triple-'B'-minus "to reflect their reduced business position following declines in the operating companies' performance and the opinion that in the event of constraints in available capital, management will prioritise the distribution of resources among its various operations".