EX-99 2 g17530aexv99.htm EX-99 EX-99
Exhibit 99
     
Press Release
  Source: First Acceptance Corporation
 
  Contact: Michael Bodayle (615) 844-2885
First Acceptance Corporation Reports Operating Results for the Quarter and Six Months Ended December 31, 2008
NASHVILLE, TN, February 9, 2009/Businesswire-FirstCall/ — First Acceptance Corporation (NYSE: FAC) today reported its financial results for the second quarter and six months ended December 31, 2008 of its fiscal year ending June 30, 2009.
Operating Results
     Revenues for the three months ended December 31, 2008 were $65.1 million, compared with $82.3 million in the same period last year. Loss before income taxes for the three months ended December 31, 2008 was $1.4 million, compared with income before income taxes of $33 thousand in the same period last year. Net loss for the three months ended December 31, 2008 was $1.0 million, or $0.02 per share on a diluted basis, compared with a net loss of $11.7 million, or $0.25 per share on a diluted basis, for the three months ended December 31, 2007.
     Revenues for the six months ended December 31, 2008 were $136.7 million, compared with $169.5 million in the same period last year. Income before income taxes for the six months ended December 31, 2008 was $2.4 million, compared with $3.0 million in the same period last year. Net income for the six months ended December 31, 2008 was $0.8 million, or $0.02 per share on a diluted basis, compared with a net loss of $9.8 million, or $0.21 per share on a diluted basis, for the six months ended December 31, 2007.
     The results for the three months ended December 31, 2008 included charges of $5.1 million, or $3.3 million after taxes ($0.07 per share on a diluted basis), in costs associated with the settlement of litigation described below. The results for the three months ended December 31, 2007 included an increase in the valuation allowance for our deferred tax asset of $11.6 million, or $0.24 per share on a diluted basis.
     Premiums earned for the three months ended December 31, 2008 were $54.8 million, compared with $70.5 million for the three months ended December 31, 2007. Premiums earned for the six months ended December 31, 2008 were $116.7 million, compared with $145.3 million for the six months ended December 31, 2007. The decreases in premiums earned were primarily due to declines in policies written resulting from the weak economic conditions, rate increases taken in a number of states to improve underwriting profitability, and the closure of 53 poor performing stores since January 2007. At December 31, 2008, the number of policies in force was 159,557, compared with 203,008 at December 31, 2007. At December 31, 2008, we operated 424 stores, compared with 440 stores at December 31, 2007.
     Approximately 69% of the $15.7 million decline in premiums earned for the three months ended December 31, 2008 and approximately 73% of the $28.6 million decline in premiums earned for the six months ended December 31, 2008 was in our Florida, Georgia, Texas and Tennessee markets. These states collectively accounted for 52% of premiums earned during both the three and six months ended
December 31, 2008, down from 56% for the same periods in the

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prior year. Our premiums earned in these states were adversely affected by the weak economic conditions, as well as a decline in used car sales, which have historically been a significant contributor to new policy growth in these markets. Additionally, the decline in our Florida market was due to a January 1, 2008 rate increase to improve our underwriting profitability.
     Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Ratio. The loss and loss adjustment expense ratio was 68.5% for the three months ended December 31, 2008, compared with 77.1% for the three months ended December 31, 2007. The loss and loss adjustment expense ratio was 69.7% for the six months ended December 31, 2008, compared with 77.1% for the six months ended December 31, 2007. We experienced unfavorable development of approximately $0.3 million for the three months ended December 31, 2008 and favorable development of approximately $1.1 million for the six months ended December 31, 2008 for losses occurring prior to calendar year 2008. For the three and six months ended December 31, 2007, we did not experience any significant development for prior accident periods. In addition, we did not experience any significant weather-related losses during the three and six months ended December 31, 2008.
     Excluding the development noted above, the loss and loss adjustment expense ratio for the three and six months ended December 31, 2008 was 68.0% and 70.6%, respectively. These improvements over the same periods last year were primarily the result of a revision in our estimate of the loss and loss adjustment expense ratio for calendar 2008 which improved from 76.5% at June 30, 2008 to 73.8% at December 31, 2008. We attribute this improvement to the impact of the rate increases taken in early calendar 2008 in our Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Texas and South Carolina markets and the continued improvement in our underwriting and claim handling practices.
     Expense Ratio. Our expense ratio for the three months ended December 31, 2008 was 25.2%, compared with 23.0% for the same period in the prior year. Our expense ratio for the six months ended December 31, 2008 was 23.2%, compared with 21.3% for the six months ended December 31, 2007. These increases were primarily due to the declines in premiums earned discussed above.
     Combined Ratio. The combined ratio decreased to 93.7% for the three months ended December 31, 2008 from 100.1% for the three months ended December 31, 2007. The combined ratio decreased to 92.9% for the six months ended December 31, 2008 from 98.4% for the six months ended December 31, 2007.
     Litigation Settlement. As previously reported, we entered into a settlement agreement relating to the class action litigation pending against us in the State of Georgia, which was approved by the court in November 2008. In addition, during December 2008, we entered into a settlement agreement with the plaintiffs in similar litigation pending against us in the State of Alabama, which was approved by the court in February 2009. During the quarter ended June 30, 2008, we accrued $6.7 million for the costs of certain components of the settlements, including plaintiffs’ attorneys’ fees and expenses and estimated costs associated with the administration of the settlements. During the three and six months ended December 31, 2008, we paid $3.8 million in plaintiffs’ attorneys’ fees and expenses as stipulated in the Georgia litigation settlement agreement and $0.1 million and $0.2 million, respectively, in costs associated with the

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administration of the settlements. We also reduced our estimated accrual for plaintiffs’ attorneys’ fees and expenses in Alabama from $2.5 million to $2.3 million as stipulated in the litigation settlement agreement. As previously reported, class members are entitled to receive premium credits or reimbursement certificates pursuant to the terms of the settlement agreements. Based upon our analysis of the premium credits available to these members, we have accrued, as of December 31, 2008, approximately $5.2 million for currently estimable costs associated with the utilization of available premium credits for the plaintiffs in the Georgia and Alabama litigation. We are still in discussions with our insurance carriers regarding coverage for the costs and expenses incurred relating to the litigation settlements and are not able currently to estimate the amount, if any, that we may receive from our insurance carriers.
About First Acceptance Corporation
     First Acceptance Corporation provides non-standard private passenger automobile insurance, primarily through employee-agents. At December 31, 2008, we leased and operated 424 retail offices in 12 states. Our insurance company subsidiaries are licensed to do business in 25 states. Additional information about First Acceptance Corporation can be found online at www.firstacceptancecorp.com.
     This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements, which have been included in reliance on the “safe harbor” provisions of the federal securities laws, involve risks and uncertainties. Investors are hereby cautioned that these statements may be affected by important factors, including, among others, the factors set forth under the caption “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K and in our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual operations and results may differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.

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FIRST ACCEPTANCE CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations
(in thousands, except per share data)
(Unaudited)
                                 
    Three Months Ended     Six Months Ended  
    December 31,     December 31,  
    2008     2007     2008     2007  
 
                       
Revenues:
                               
Premiums earned
  $ 54,823     $ 70,484     $ 116,661     $ 145,287  
Commission and fee income
    7,675       8,987       15,918       18,285  
Investment income
    2,608       2,859       5,331       5,886  
Other
    (26 )     11       (1,241 )     41  
 
                       
 
    65,080       82,341       136,669       169,499  
 
                       
 
                               
Costs and expenses:
                               
Losses and loss adjustment expenses
    37,553       54,346       81,285       112,017  
Insurance operating expenses
    21,510       25,180       42,956       49,166  
Other operating expenses
    314       759       706       1,264  
Litigation settlement
    5,089             5,234        
Stock-based compensation
    514       354       1,009       678  
Depreciation and amortization
    455       380       924       748  
Interest expense
    1,033       1,289       2,190       2,630  
 
                       
 
    66,468       82,308       134,304       166,503  
 
                       
 
                               
Income (loss) before income taxes
    (1,388 )     33       2,365       2,996  
Provision (benefit) for income taxes
    (385 )     11,764       1,527       12,835  
 
                       
Net income (loss)
  $ (1,003 )   $ (11,731 )   $ 838     $ (9,839 )
 
                       
 
                               
Net income (loss) per share:
                               
Basic and diluted
  $ (0.02 )   $ (0.25 )   $ 0.02     $ (0.21 )
 
                       
 
                               
Number of shares used to calculate net income (loss) per share:
                               
Basic
    47,658       47,618       47,656       47,617  
 
                       
Diluted
    47,658       47,618       49,088       47,617  
 
                       

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FIRST ACCEPTANCE CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
(in thousands, except per share data)
                 
    December 31,     June 30,  
    2008     2008  
    (Unaudited)          
ASSETS
               
Fixed maturities, available-for-sale at fair value
  $ 189,960     $ 189,570  
Cash and cash equivalents
    23,556       38,646  
Premiums and fees receivable, net
    48,677       63,377  
Deferred tax asset, net
    16,247       17,593  
Other assets
    14,416       15,053  
Deferred acquisition costs
    4,113       4,549  
Goodwill and identifiable intangible assets
    144,442       144,442  
 
           
TOTAL ASSETS
  $ 441,411     $ 473,230  
 
           
 
               
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
               
Loss and loss adjustment expense reserves
  $ 93,803     $ 101,407  
Unearned premiums and fees
    60,367       77,237  
Notes payable and capitalized lease obligations
    98       4,124  
Debentures payable
    41,240       41,240  
Other liabilities
    20,233       23,763  
 
           
Total liabilities
    215,741       247,771  
Total stockholders’ equity
    225,670       225,459  
 
           
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
  $ 441,411     $ 473,230  
 
           
 
               
Book value per share
  $ 4.69     $ 4.69  
 
           

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FIRST ACCEPTANCE CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
Supplemental Data
(Unaudited)
GROSS PREMIUMS EARNED BY STATE
                                 
    Three Months Ended     Six Months Ended  
    December 31,     December 31,  
    2008     2007     2008     2007  
Premiums earned:
                               
Georgia
  $ 12,344     $ 15,135     $ 25,772     $ 31,238  
Illinois
    6,826       7,931       14,188       16,100  
Florida
    6,196       10,820       13,812       23,181  
Texas
    6,133       8,217       13,134       16,743  
Alabama
    5,888       7,034       12,460       14,538  
South Carolina
    4,491       5,650       9,941       11,290  
Tennessee
    3,800       5,168       8,215       10,690  
Ohio
    3,182       3,814       6,633       7,814  
Pennsylvania
    2,786       2,360       5,572       4,661  
Indiana
    1,298       1,806       2,861       3,774  
Missouri
    956       1,382       2,085       2,852  
Mississippi
    923       1,167       1,988       2,406  
 
                       
Total premiums earned
  $ 54,823     $ 70,484     $ 116,661     $ 145,287  
 
                       
 
COMBINED RATIOS (INSURANCE COMPANIES)
 
    Three Months Ended   Six Months Ended
    December 31,   December 31,
    2008   2007   2008   2007
Loss and loss adjustment expense
    68.5 %     77.1 %     69.7 %     77.1 %
Expense
    25.2 %     23.0 %     23.2 %     21.3 %
 
                               
Combined
    93.7 %     100.1 %     92.9 %     98.4 %
 
                               
 
POLICIES IN FORCE
 
    Three Months Ended   Six Months Ended
    December 31,   December 31,
    2008   2007   2008   2007
Policies in force — beginning of period
    170,555       212,511       194,079       226,974  
Net decrease during period
    (10,998 )     (9,503 )     (34,522 )     (23,966 )
 
                               
Policies in force — end of period
    159,557       203,008       159,557       203,008  
 
                               

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FIRST ACCEPTANCE CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
Supplemental Data (continued)
(Unaudited)
NUMBER OF RETAIL LOCATIONS
     Retail location counts are based upon the date that a location commenced or ceased writing business.
                                 
    Three Months Ended   Six Months Ended
    December 31,   December 31,
    2008   2007   2008   2007
Retail locations — beginning of period
    429       458       431       462  
Opened
          1       1       2  
Closed
    (5 )     (19 )     (8 )     (24 )
 
                               
Retail locations — end of period
    424       440       424       440  
 
                               
RETAIL LOCATIONS BY STATE
                                                 
    December 31,   September 30,   June 30,
    2008   2007   2008   2007   2008   2007
Alabama
    25       25       25       25       25       25  
Florida
    39       40       39       41       40       41  
Georgia
    61       61       61       62       61       62  
Illinois
    81       80       81       81       80       81  
Indiana
    18       22       19       23       19       24  
Mississippi
    8       8       8       8       8       8  
Missouri
    12       16       13       16       14       15  
Ohio
    28       29       29       30       29       30  
Pennsylvania
    18       19       18       24       19       25  
South Carolina
    27       28       28       28       28       28  
Tennessee
    20       20       20       20       20       20  
Texas
    87       92       88       100       88       103  
 
                                               
Total
    424       440       429       458       431       462  
 
                                               

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