PL Planet Labs PBC

Protective Life Corporation (NYSE: PL) ("Protective") today announced that one of its subsidiaries, Lyndon Insurance Group, Inc. has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the vehicle extended service contract business of Western General, which consists of the stock of three companies and some additional assets for a cash purchase price of $33 million at closing plus contingent consideration based on future performance. The transaction, which is expected to close in the third quarter of 2006, is subject to regulatory approval and other customary conditions to closing. Western General is headquartered in Calabasas, California and is an industry leading provider of vehicle service contracts nationally, focusing primarily on the West Coast market. Western General currently provides extended service contract administration for several automobile manufacturers and provides used car service contracts for a publicly-traded national dealership group. The acquisition includes approximately 90 employees primarily located in California with significant experience in the market. Western General's management team, including its President, Robert M. Ehrlich, will continue to manage and operate the business going forward. Allen W. Ritchie, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Protective stated: "We are delighted to announce the acquisition of Western General. The transaction capitalizes on the relationship we established with Western General in 2003 to provide insurance backing their vehicle service contract programs and the success of that business relationship. Western General's experience in this market extends back to 1975 and we are looking forward to building upon that foundation." Protective Life Corporation provides financial services through the production, distribution and administration of insurance and investment products throughout the United States. It has annual revenues of approximately $2.1 billion and as of March 31, 2006 had assets of approximately $29.0 billion. FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS This release includes "forward-looking statements" which express expectations of future events and/or results. All statements based on future expectations rather than on historical facts are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties, and the Company cannot give assurance that such statements will prove to be correct. The factors which could affect the Company's future results include, but are not limited to, general economic conditions and the following known trends and uncertainties: we are exposed to the risks of natural disasters, pandemics, malicious and terrorist acts that could adversely affect our operations; we operate in a mature, highly competitive industry, which could limit our ability to gain or maintain our position in the industry; a ratings downgrade could adversely affect our ability to compete; our policy claims fluctuate from period to period, and actual results could differ from our expectations; our results may be negatively affected should actual experience differ from management's assumptions and estimates; the use of reinsurance introduces variability in our statements of income; we could be forced to sell investments at a loss to cover policyholder withdrawals; interest rate fluctuations could negatively affect our spread income or otherwise impact our business; equity market volatility could negatively impact our business; insurance companies are highly regulated and subject to numerous legal restrictions and regulations; changes to tax law or interpretations of existing tax law could adversely affect the Company and its ability to compete with non-insurance products or reduce the demand for certain insurance products; financial services companies are frequently the targets of litigation, including class action litigation, which could result in substantial judgments; the financial services industry is sometimes the target of law enforcement investigations and the focus of increased regulatory scrutiny; our ability to maintain low unit costs is dependent upon the level of new sales and persistency of existing business; our investments are subject to market and credit risks; we may not realize our anticipated financial results from our acquisitions strategy; we may not be able to close our pending acquisitions, or may not be able to achieve the expected results once they are consummated; we are dependent on the performance of others; our reinsurers could fail to meet assumed obligations, increase rates or be subject to adverse developments that could affect us; computer viruses or network security breaches could affect our data processing systems or those of our business partners; our ability to grow depends in large part upon the continued availability of capital; and new accounting rules or changes to existing accounting rules could negatively impact us. Please refer to Exhibit 99 about these factors that could affect future results. Please refer to Exhibit 99 of the Company's most recent Form 10-K/10-Q for more information about these factors which could affect future results.