92


                                                                      Exhibit 23





               CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS



The Board of Directors and Stockholders
ALLIED Group, Inc.


We  consent  to  incorporation  by  reference  in  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, 33-61090, and
333-19163 on Form S-3 of ALLIED  Group,  Inc. of our reports  dated  February 3,
1998, relating to the accompanying  consolidated balance sheets of ALLIED Group,
Inc. and subsidiaries as of December 31, 1997 and 1996, and related consolidated
statements of income and comprehensive  income,  stockholders'  equity, and cash
flows and related schedules for each of the years in the three-year period ended
December 31, 1997,  which appear  in the December 31, 1997 annual report on Form
10-K of ALLIED Group, Inc.


                                                KPMG Peat Marwick LLP


Des Moines, Iowa
March 10, 1998