Safeco® and Montgomery Insurance™ Announce New Southeast Regional Operations

Coordinated Personal and Commercial Lines to Deliver More Value to Agents

– Safeco Insurance and Montgomery Insurance, both Liberty Mutual Agency Markets companies, recently announced key management appointments to lead operations in their shared Southeast territory.

Mr. Cecil C. Booher has been named Vice President, Safeco Insurance, and Southeast Regional General Manager. Most recently, Mr. Booher was Vice President and Mid-Atlantic Regional Executive for Safeco Insurance. In this new capacity, Mr. Booher will be based in Duluth, Georgia and is responsible for profit and growth throughout Safeco’s seven-state Southeast territory.  

Joining Safeco’s Southeast personal lines field operations as Agency Managers and reporting to Mr. Booher are: Mr. Lee A. Allison, representing Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee; Mr. Paul J. Frein, representing North and South Carolina; and Mr. Bryan VanVranken, representing Florida and Georgia.

As announced by Liberty Mutual Group on September 22nd, the Agency Markets business unit’s personal lines will be sold under the Safeco brand. Montgomery Insurance will be the exclusive provider of commercial lines business in its seven-state Southeast territory, where Safeco will also offer personal lines. Strong agency relationships and commitment to the independent agency system will continue to be the hallmarks of both companies.

“We’re drawing from the strengths in our collective organization to bring the best talent and experience to our regional operations,” said Michael Hughes, Executive Vice President, Agency Markets, and President, Safeco Insurance. “By placing management personnel in regions where they have great familiarity, we strengthen our agency relationships and are able to compete at a much higher level.”

“We’re very excited about building on the Montgomery Advantage and the opportunities this presents for our agents,” said Michael J. Plavnicky, President and Chief Executive Officer, Montgomery Insurance. “As Montgomery Insurance begins to focus on commercial lines, we’ve maintained familiar regional leadership to assist our agents, and they can expect innovative product development that’s faster to market and even more competitive, local pricing in the near future.”   

Montgomery Insurance and Safeco are leveraging the new Agency Markets national/regional model to deliver greater resources and an expanded appetite and product set to their agents. Working in close coordination, both operations will provide:

• Local management and pricing with national product development;
• Local agency support with national market research and analytics; and
• Local claims and underwriting staffs with a national technology infrastructure.

With industry-leading pricing sophistication and the most expansive offering of any independent agent carrier, Safeco personal lines agents will offer innovative, high-quality personal insurance products. Specialty coverages including Motorcycle, Watercraft, Recreational Vehicle, and Classic Car are available nationally, in addition to Auto, Home, Condo, Rental, and Umbrella coverages.

Montgomery Insurance commercial lines agents will continue to focus on the small-to mid-market, offering a best-in-class product portfolio that includes BOP, Packages, Commercial Auto, Workers’ Compensation, Inland Marine, and Umbrella. Agents also have access to specialty products including Schools, Farm, mono-line Inland Marine, Excess Casualty and National Programs, such as Sports & Fitness, Self-Storage Insurance, Non-profits, and Insurance Agents E & O, under the Liberty Agency Underwriters™ brand.

About Montgomery Insurance

With underwriting companies dating back to 1848, Montgomery Insurance offers a comprehensive set of commercial property and casualty products and coverages distributed only through appointed independent agents. Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Montgomery Insurance operates in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

About Safeco

In business since 1923 and based in Seattle, Washington, Safeco sells insurance to drivers and homeowners through a network of independent agents and brokers in eight regions throughout the United States.  

Montgomery Insurance and Safeco are part of Liberty Mutual Agency Markets, a business unit of Liberty Mutual Group, consisting of property and casualty and specialty insurance carriers that distribute their products and services primarily through independent agents and brokers.  Liberty Mutual Group ranks 94 on the Fortune 500 list of the largest U.S. corporations based on 2007 revenues.  The company has financial strength ratings of A (Excellent) from the A.M. Best Company, A2 (Good) from Moody’s Investors Service, and A- (Strong) from Standard & Poor’s.

Contacts: Christopher Goetcheus, 774-279-5923
or [email protected]
Paul Hollie, 206-473-5745
[email protected]