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                                                                      Exhibit 23





                  CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT AUDITORS



The Board of Directors and Stockholders
ALLIED Group, Inc.


We consent to  incorporation  by reference in the  Registration  Statement  Nos.
33-48235, 33-6643, 33-6644, 33-48206,  33-24543,  33-28907,  33-48234, 33-76876,
and 33-65037 on Form S-8 and Registration  Statement Nos.  33-48233 and 33-61090
on Form S-3 of ALLIED  Group,  Inc.  of our  reports  dated  February  2,  1996,
relating  to  the  consolidated   balance  sheets  of  ALLIED  Group,  Inc.  and
subsidiaries  as of  December  31,  1995  and  1994,  and  related  consolidated
statements  of  earnings,  stockholders'  equity,  and cash  flows  and  related
schedules  for each of the years in the  three-year  period  ended  December 31,
1995,  which  appears in the  December  31, 1995  annual  report on Form 10-K of
ALLIED  Group,  Inc. Our report  refers to a change in the  Company's  method of
accounting for investments in 1993.



                                            KPMG Peat Marwick LLP

Des Moines, Iowa
March 7, 1996