NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) Nov. 7, 2001--Standard&Poor's today lowered its ratings on Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. (Fairfax) and related insurance entities (see list). This rating action follows Fairfax's third-quarter earnings release, in which the company reported a net after-tax loss of C$458 million for the quarter. The rating action also reflects the unexpected deterioration in loss reserves at Fairfax's two principal subsidiaries, TIG Insurance Co. (TIG) and Crum&Forster Insurance Co. (C&F), and the resulting lack of progress the company has made to date in the areas of reported pretax earnings excluding realized capital gains and operating cash flow. Standard&Poor's expects both of these measures to be negative, though significantly improved, in 2001 and,
