Mercury Insurance homeowners insurance

Overview

Mercury Insurance is best known as a California auto insurer, but it has quietly become one of the state's biggest home insurers as national carriers pulled back. The group ranked #18 among U.S. homeowners insurance groups by 2025 direct premiums written, with $1.67 billion (0.89% of the national market), according to NAIC market share data. In California it was the third-largest homeowners group in 2025, with $1.21 billion and 6.85% of the market, behind only State Farm and Farmers. It also ranked 7th in Oklahoma.

The parent, Mercury General Corporation, trades on the New York Stock Exchange (MCY) and added a dual listing on NYSE Texas in January 2026. Its 2025 annual report shows $6.0 billion of direct premiums, 82% of it from California; homeowners made up $1.63 billion, or 27% of the total. Texas, its second home market, contributed $214 million of homeowners premium.

Mercury sells mainly through independent agents, about 8,510 of them, plus two agencies it owns (AIS and PoliSeek) and online quote portals whose policies are handed to agents for service. Independent agents and agencies wrote about 88% of its 2025 premium. Its stated strategy is to write homes as part of a package with auto and umbrella policies rather than as stand-alone risks.

History

George Joseph founded Mercury Casualty Company in Los Angeles in 1961 as an auto insurer meant to offer affordable coverage to drivers of all risks; he chose the name because he wanted the company to be fast and nimble like the Roman god of commerce. He served as CEO until 2006 and remains chairman. Gabe Tirador is chief executive, and Victor Joseph was promoted to president and chief operating officer in December 2023.

Growth outside California came through new subsidiaries: Mercury Insurance Company of Illinois and of Georgia (1989), American Mercury Insurance Company and a Texas Lloyd's company (1996), Mercury County Mutual in Texas (2000) and Mercury Indemnity Company of America, which writes in Florida and New Jersey (2001). In 2009 Mercury bought the AIS and PoliSeek agencies. In August 2025 its Texas Lloyd's company converted to a stock insurer named Mercury Insurance Company of Texas. Corporate headquarters remain on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles; the insurance companies' home office is in Brea.

Homeowners coverage

Mercury writes homeowners, condo, renters and landlord policies (the landlord form covers one- to four-unit rentals). The base homeowners policy includes dwelling, personal property, additional living expenses, personal liability and medical payments to others. Optional coverages listed on its site include:

• Extended replacement cost of up to 150% of the dwelling limit, which matters after a wildfire when rebuilding costs spike.
• Scheduled coverage for jewelry, fine art and antiques.
• Service line protection for underground water, sewer and utility lines.
• Home Systems Protection, an equipment breakdown coverage for appliances and home systems.
• Identity Management Services and Home Cyber Protection.

Most of its homeowners policies carry $300,000 or less of liability and replacement values of $750,000 or less, according to the annual report; its published maximum for homeowners liability is $1 million, so higher-limit buyers will need its umbrella. In California, Mercury places all earthquake coverage sold with its home policies directly with the California Earthquake Authority. Flood is not covered and must be bought separately.

Discounts and savings

Mercury's homeowners page lists discounts for a home and auto bundle, protective devices (smoke alarms, deadbolts, burglar alarms), fire-resistant construction materials such as concrete or tile roofs, newer homes, gated communities and higher deductibles. Discounts vary by state. Under its 2025 California rate plan, home-hardening credits can cut the wildfire portion of a premium by up to a third, according to the San Francisco Chronicle's report on the approval. As in every California rating plan that prices wildfire risk, "Safer from Wildfires" mitigation must also be credited.

Where it sells and recent market moves

Mercury sells homeowners insurance in 10 states: Arizona, California, Georgia, Illinois, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Texas and Virginia. It also writes auto in Florida but does not offer homeowners there.

California rates have risen in three steps. Regulators approved 6.99% effective May 2024 and 12% effective March 2025; Mercury says that added up to a cumulative 19.8% since 2024. In December 2025 the California Department of Insurance approved a further 6.9%, effective July 2026. That filing was the first approved under the state's Sustainable Insurance Strategy, which lets insurers use catastrophe models and reinsurance costs in rates in exchange for writing more in wildfire-distressed areas. The Chronicle reported the average changes as +8.2% for homeowners, -8.3% for condo owners and -6.3% for renters, with individual changes ranging from a 10% cut to a 60% increase depending on wildfire risk, for more than 650,000 customers. CDI said Mercury committed to more than 6,000 new policies over two years and more than 38,000 over the long term, particularly in distressed areas and through FAIR Plan depopulation.

The January 2025 Los Angeles fires were the largest catastrophe in Mercury's history. It handled more than 2,900 wildfire claims and had paid over $1.4 billion by February 2026. Gross losses of $2.19 billion were cut to about $380 million net after $1.29 billion of reinsurance, $48 million from selling its Palisades subrogation rights and an estimated $538 million it expects to recover from Southern California Edison over the Eaton fire. It also absorbed about $93 million as its share of California FAIR Plan losses, half of a $50 million assessment being recouped through a temporary policyholder surcharge. Mercury reported about $80 million of adverse development on the fires in the first half of 2026.

Claims

Residence claims can be filed 24 hours a day by phone at 800-503-3724 or through Mercury's online claims portal. For theft or burglary, Mercury asks you to notify police first. After a loss it asks policyholders to inventory damage room by room, photograph it, make temporary repairs to prevent more damage, keep itemized receipts for living expenses if the home is unlivable, and not to throw away damaged items until the adjuster has seen them. Its Catastrophe Center posts wildfire claim and evacuation guidance.

Ratings and reputation

AM Best rates all of Mercury's insurance companies A (Excellent). On February 20, 2025, after the Los Angeles fires, AM Best affirmed that rating and revised the outlook to negative; the company's annual report filed in February 2026 describes that as the current status. The same report gives Mercury's financial strength ratings as A- (stable outlook) from Fitch and A3 (negative outlook) from Moody's. Despite the fire losses, Mercury reported 2025 net income of $541.1 million and a full-year combined ratio of 96.3%.

Who it suits

Mercury fits California homeowners who want an independent agent, a carrier that is still adding homeowners policies in the state, and a discount for packaging home, auto and umbrella. Its exposure is concentrated in one state, and its wildfire-driven pricing means two neighbors can see very different renewal changes.

• Strengths: California's third-largest homeowners group, still growing under the Sustainable Insurance Strategy; wide independent-agent network; extended replacement cost up to 150% and service line, equipment breakdown and identity coverages; A (Excellent) from AM Best.
• Weaknesses: Homeowners sold in only 10 states; California homeowners rates up about 19.8% from 2024 through 2025, with another 6.9% from July 2026 and individual increases of up to 60%; AM Best outlook negative since February 2025; heavy concentration in California wildfire and earthquake-prone markets.

How to contact Mercury Insurance