Mercury General

Mercury founder George Joseph, who flew 50 World War II missions over Africa and Italy as a navigator before graduating from Harvard on the GI Bill in 1949, decided his Ivy League math degree fit nicely into the actuarial world of insurance. Joseph then spent more than a decade in the industry before founding Mercury Insurance in 1961 as a low-cost alternative to larger insurance companies.Mercury General Corp., which consisted of six employees sold its first policy April 1, 1962. Now, it's one of California's largest insurance providers in the state.Mercury's California expansion began in 1964 with the opening of its first Orange County office. Two years later, the company spread into the San Fernando Valley and also began operations in San Diego. Mercury offices opened in Northern California by 1968.Mercury wrote $1 million in premiums per month by 1970, sold its first homeowners policy in 1972 and in 1973 the company celebrated its 10th consecutive year of revenue growth. Newly created Mercury Insurance Company wrote its first auto policy in 1977.Mercury expanded outside of California, opening offices in Georgia and Illinois beginning in 1989.The company insured more than 1 million vehicles in California by 1998. This led to further growth into Florida , New York and Virginia .Forbes lists Mercury Insurance on its “100 Most Trustworthy Companies” in 2012 “America’s 50 Most Trusted Financial Companies” in 2014, 2015 and 2016. It has been rated A “Excellent” by insurance industry rating agencies A.M. Best and Fitch.In 2017, the company was named a “Top Five Best Auto Insurance Company” by Insure.com, who surveyed more than 3,700 U.S. insurance customers on the criteria of “customer service,” “claims handling,” “pricing,” “plans to renew current policy,” and “would recommend the insurer.” Additionally, Mercury Insurance was named one of “America’s Best Midsize Employers” by Forbes magazine in 2017.Mercury is currently operating in 11 states: Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Texas and Virginia.Mercury is led by president and CEO Gabriel Tirador, and Joseph is chairman of the board.