UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): October 15, 2003
ERIE INDEMNITY COMPANY
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
PENNSYLVANIA 0-24000 25-0466020
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(State or other jurisdiction of (Commission (I.R.S. Employer
incorporation) File Number) Identification No.)
100 Erie Insurance Place, Erie, Pennsylvania 16530
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(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant's telephone number, including area code (814) 870-2000
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Item 5. OTHER EVENTS.
On October 8, 2003, Erie Indemnity Company issued a press release which is
filed as Exhibit 99.1 hereto and is incorporated herein by reference.
Exhibit Number Description
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99.1 Press release dated October 8, 2003
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
ERIE INDEMNITY COMPANY
Erie Indemnity Company
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(Registrant)
Date: October 15, 2003 /s/ Timothy G. NeCastro
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(Timothy G. NeCastro, Executive Vice President & CFO)
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EXHIBIT 99.1
Erie Insurance Reports Losses From Catastrophes
ERIE, Pa. - October 8, 2003 -- (Nasdaq: ERIE) Erie Insurance Group announced
today that it has received loss notifications from more than 17,000
policyholders as a result of Hurricane Isabel and subsequent severe wind and
rain storms that struck North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania.
Erie Insurance Group estimates total losses from these events to be
approximately $74 million. Additionally, catastrophic wind and hailstorms that
struck western Pennsylvania in July resulted in nearly 1,700 claims and incurred
losses of approximately $20 million.
Erie Indemnity Company shares in the underwriting result of the combined
Property & Casualty Group through its 5.5 percent participation in an
intercompany reinsurance arrangement. These catastrophe losses, coupled with
other underwriting losses, will trigger recoveries under an aggregate
excess-of-loss reinsurance agreement the Company has in effect with Erie
Insurance Exchange. Because of these recoveries, there will be no material
effect from these catastrophe losses on the third quarter 2003 financial results
of the Erie Indemnity Company.
Erie Indemnity Company provides management services to the member companies of
the Erie Insurance Group, which includes the Erie Insurance Exchange, Flagship
City Insurance Company, Erie Insurance Company, Erie Insurance Property and
Casualty Company, Erie Insurance Company of New York and Erie Family Life
Insurance Company.
According to A.M. Best Company, Erie Insurance Group, based in Erie,
Pennsylvania, is the 13th largest automobile insurer in the United States based
on direct premiums written and the 20th largest property/casualty insurer in the
United States based on total lines net premium written. The Group, rated A+
(Superior) by A.M. Best Company, has more than 3.6 million policies in force and
operates in 11 states and the District of Columbia. Erie Insurance Group ranked
454 on the FORTUNE 500.
News releases and more information about Erie Insurance Group are available at
http://www.erieinsurance.com
"Safe Harbor" Statement Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995: Certain forward-looking statements contained herein involve risks and
uncertainties. These statements include certain discussions relating to
management fee revenue, cost of management operations, underwriting, premium and
investment income volume, business strategies, profitability and business
relationships and the Company's other business activities during 2003 and
beyond. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such
as "may," "will," "should," "could," "would," "expect," "plan," "intend,"
"anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "project," "predict," "potential" and
similar expressions. These forward-looking statements reflect the Company's
current views about future events, are based on assumptions and are subject to
known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause results to differ
materially from those anticipated in those statements. Many of the factors that
will determine future events or achievements are beyond our ability to control
or predict.
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