The Alea Group, a Bermuda-based insurance company that has been selling off units and putting others into run off, has asked the ratings firms that have been tracking its financial performance to suspend their analysis of the company.

Alea previously asked ratings firm A.M. Best to stop rating the company, and has now halted Standard & Poor's ratings.

Standard & Poor's, a ratings firm widely followed by insurance buyers, yesterday, in an e-mailed statement, said it had affirmed Alea's financial strength rating of 'BBB', but was asked to no longer keep the company under surveillance.

S&P had previously downgraded Alea's ratings, and the company also suffered a ratings downgrade from A.M. Best, another leading ratings firm, on concerns over whether the company was sufficiently capitalised.

As a company in run-off, Alea will stay open to honour claims from policies already sold but won't do any business. This could mean the company no longer sees any value in being rated by either ratings firm since the ratings are key to attracting customers, something Alea no longer needs to do.

Alea's management is taking steps to maximise the value of the group, including the sale of renewal rights, the "aggressive" management of costs, and the commutation of contracts, S&P said.

An insurer bowing out of the market can sell the renewal rights to another company effectively giving the buyer access to the seller's customers. And under a commutation, contracts are ended early, while coverage is arranged with another insurer.

The ratings agency also said it expects Alea to be able to meet any obligations it has under contracts it has sold, and that unrated debt and preferred securities held by Alea in Bermuda totalling $320 million are not in line to be paid ahead of policyholders.

Ongoing shareholder funds support net loss reserves estimated at $1.3 billion, S&P said. An insurance company sets up reserve funds to hold monies earmarked to pay for possible future claims.