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The Farmers Insurance Group of Companies provide personal insurance, property insurance, homeowners insurance, automobile insurance, life insurance, and financial services to over 41 million clients throughout 41 states.

Farmer’s Insurance Group is the third largest insurance company in the United States and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. Additionally, Farmer’s is 100% owned by Zurich Financial Services based in Zurich, Switzerland.

The Farmer’s Group of Companies

Farmers Group, Inc. is the holding company that provides insurance management services, and it acts under Farmers Underwriters Association. However, Farmer’s is comprised of several subsidiaries, including:

• Truck Underwriters Association
• Fire Underwriters Association
• Mid-Century Insurance Company
• Foremost Insurance Company
• Bristol West Insurance Group
• Farmers Financial Solutions, LLC
• Farmers New World Life Insurance Company

Founding

In 1928, Farmers Automobile Inter-Insurance Exchange, was opened in downtown Los Angeles, California by John C. Tyler and Thomas E. Leavey. Originally strictly an automobile insurance company, Farmer’s quickly grew to offer many of the services listed above.

In 1973, John C. Tyler passed away at the age of 86, and in 1978, Thomas E. Leavey retired from his position as CEO of Farmer’s Insurance Group. But the legacy these men built lives on, and in the twenty years following Thomas E. Leavey’s retirement, Farmer’s grew from the seventh largest to the third largest domestic insurance provider in America.

Financial Solvency

Financially, Farmer’s is an incredibly strong company. A.M.Best Company, a Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organization based in Oldwick New Jersey gives Farmer’s an “A” rating, the highest possible mark. Moody’s investor Service and Standard and Poor’s, two other nationally recognized Rating Organizations, rate Farmer’s at “A2” (a strong rating), and 
“AA-” (a very strong rating).

Farmer’s Insurance and its subsidiaries are also pioneers in online service provision, offering a multitude of services online, including affordable auto insurance quotes, home and business insurance, fire damage assessment, life insurance counseling, and some subsidiaries even provide free online car insurance quotes.

Natural Disaster Response

While financial stability is always good in an insurance company, it’s not everything. To the people who file claims, customer service and follow through are far more important. To judge the customer service levels of Farmer’s Insurance, there is no better example than Farmer’s quick and effective responses after two of the most massive natural disasters in the last decade.

Hurricane Rita tore through Beaumont Texas in 2005, leaving many people without food, water, shelter, or power. Not only did Farmer’s Insurance send over 300 independent insurance adjusters to quickly assess damage and provide assistance with claims, they gave $100,000 to the local emergency operations center, and donated two large generators to provide local power.

In the wake of the California wildfires in 2007, Farmer’s Insurance provided locations where their customers could receive free meals and lodging, and actually spent money out of pocket to advertise the existence and location of these facilities so that Farmer’s customers could find and take advantage of them.

Consistently rising above and beyond the call of duty is one of the reasons Farmer’s Insurance is one of the largest and most financially sound insurance companies in the world.

About the Author

Laura Penekamp is a domestic goddess who has her hands full with three school-aged children, and she thoroughly enjoys her career as a freelance writer. When she is not packing lunches or assisting with homework, Laura adores reading historical novels and researching various aspects of history.