Though it’s difficult to assess the long-term ramifications, in the short term, Standard & Poor’s downgrade of the United States’ credit rating will not adversely affect U.S. property-casualty insurers, according to the Insurance Information Institute.

“The nation’s property-casualty insurers have very limited direct exposure to the U.S. government bond market and have collectively set aside hundreds of billions of dollars to pay unanticipated claims,” said Robert Hartwig, the institute’s president. “Both of these factors will enable the industry to operate effectively despite the recent downgrade of long-term U.S. bonds.”

Property-casualty insurers have collected between $425 billion and $450 billion in annual premiums each year since 2003, with net investment gains ranging from $31 billion to $64 billion annually within that period. The institute said a “very small fraction” of the companies’ net investment income came from U.S. government bonds. “And despite the downgrade, all interest due will be paid by the U.S. government,” Hartwig noted.