NOTE 4. FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT

Fair value measurements are received from independent pricing service vendors, utilized by our outside investment manager whom we employ to assist us with investment accounting services. This manager utilizes a pricing committee, which oversees the use of one or more independent pricing service vendors. The pricing committee consists of five or more members of the investment management firm, one from senior management and one from the accounting group, with the remainder representing asset class specialists and client strategists. The pricing source for each security is determined in accordance with the pricing source procedures approved by the pricing committee. The investment manager receives supporting documentation from the independent pricing service vendor detailing the inputs, models and processes used in the vendors’ evaluation process to determine the appropriate fair value hierarchy. It is ultimately our responsibility to determine whether the values obtained from these service providers are representative of fair value.

To validate the techniques or models used by pricing sources, our review process includes, but is not limited to:

(i)

A review of the validity of the fair market valuation of individual securities deemed as outliers (i.e., vendor price differed significantly from other vendor prices), securities with significant price movements from previous months, securities with stale prices and securities with negative yields.

(ii)

A comparison of the count of securities priced by certain vendors for significant movements in vendor CUSIP counts.

(iii)

A review of the results of back-testing, including the comparison of executed prices to the historical fair value estimates from the pricing service and documentation to support trades above certain variance thresholds.

(iv)

A review of the Statement on Standards for Attestation Engagements (“SSAE”) No.16 report of our outside investment managers for any exceptions.

(v)

Management also periodically independently prices the portfolio using alternative pricing vendors and investigates variances outside of the established thresholds.

The fair value of our financial instruments is determined based on the following fair value hierarchy:

Level 1 – Quoted prices for identical instruments in active markets. Examples are listed equity and fixed income securities traded on an exchange. U.S. Treasury securities are reported as Level 1 and are valued based on unadjusted quoted prices for identical assets in active markets that our Company can access.

Level 2 – Quoted prices for similar instruments in active markets; quoted prices for identical or similar instruments in markets that are not active; and model-derived valuations in which all significant inputs and significant value drivers are observable in active markets. Examples are asset-backed and mortgage-backed securities that are similar to other asset-backed or mortgage-backed securities observed in the market. U.S. government agency securities are reported as Level 2 and are valued using yields and spreads that are observable in active markets.

Level 3 – Valuations derived from valuation techniques in which one or more significant inputs or significant value drivers are unobservable. An example would be a private placement with minimal liquidity.

The following tables present, for each of the fair value hierarchy levels as defined by the accounting guidance for fair value measurements and described below, our Company’s Fixed Maturities and Equity Securities by asset class that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis, as well as the fair value of the 5.75% Senior notes due October 15, 2023 (the “5.75% Senior notes”) carried at amortized cost as of December 31, 2017 and 2016:

	December 31, 2017
amounts in thousands	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total
Fixed Maturities:
U.S. Treasury Bonds, Agency Bonds and Foreign Government Bonds	$	178,251	$	215,312	$	—	$	393,563
States, Municipalities and Political Subdivisions		—		814,632		—		814,632
Mortgage-Backed and Asset-Backed Securities:
Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities		—		407,619		—		407,619
Residential Mortgage Obligations		—		54,104		—		54,104
Asset-Backed Securities		—		328,753		—		328,753
Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities		—		160,904		—		160,904
Subtotal	$	—	$	951,380	$	—	$	951,380
Corporate Exposures		—		897,479		—		897,479
Total Fixed Maturities	$	178,251	$	2,878,803	$	—	$	3,057,054
Equity Securities:
Common Stocks		52,439		—		—		52,439
Preferred Stocks		—		183,542		—		183,542
Total Equity Securities	$	52,439	$	183,542	$	—	$	235,981
Short-Term Investments		127,128		—		—		127,128
Total Assets Measured at Fair Value	$	357,818	$	3,062,345	$	—	$	3,420,163
Senior Notes	$	—	$	277,951	$	—	$	277,951
Total Liabilities Measured at Fair Value	$	—	$	277,951	$	—	$	277,951
	December 31, 2016
amounts in thousands	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total
Fixed Maturities:
U.S. Treasury Bonds, Agency Bonds and Foreign Government Bonds	$	47,704	$	226,072	$	—	$	273,776
States, Municipalities and Political Subdivisions		—		547,415		—		547,415
Mortgage-Backed and Asset-Backed Securities:
Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities		—		487,364		—		487,364
Residential Mortgage Obligations		—		20,530		—		20,530
Asset-Backed Securities		—		314,601		—		314,601
Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities		—		154,139		—		154,139
Subtotal	$	—	$	976,634	$	—	$	976,634
Corporate Exposures		—		838,057		—		838,057
Total Fixed Maturities	$	47,704	$	2,588,178	$	—	$	2,635,882
Equity Securities:
Common Stocks		164,087		—		—		164,087
Preferred Stocks		—		185,055		—		185,055
Total Equity Securities	$	164,087	$	185,055	$	—	$	349,142
Short-Term Investments		143,539		—		—		143,539
Total Assets Measured at Fair Value	$	355,330	$	2,773,233	$	—	$	3,128,563
Senior Notes	$	—	$	280,316	$	—	$	280,316
Total Liabilities Measured at Fair Value	$	—	$	280,316	$	—	$	280,316

All other financial assets and liabilities including Cash, Premium Receivables, Reinsurance Recoverables and Reinsurance Balance Payables are carried at cost, which approximates fair value.

Our Company did not have any significant transfers between the Level 1 and Level 2 classifications for the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016.

As of December 31, 2017 and 2016, our Company did not have any Level 3 assets.