Liberty Mutual Insurance, the sixth-largest personal insurance provider in the U.S., will market and sell all of its personal lines products solely under the Liberty Mutual brand starting in 2026.

Safeco Insurance, the company's brand within the independent agent channel, will retire as a brand. However, Safeco customers will keep their agent relationship and their policies will not be impacted other than the name change.

Liberty Mutual also sells directly to consumers online and through licensed sales representatives at call centers. The direct and independent agent channel product offerings will remain differentiated.

Independent insurance agents were notified of the change this week and will receive a series of communications about the next steps.

“This transition will allow us to fully harness the Liberty Mutual brand value for all of our customers, agents and partners, across all distribution channels," said Tyler Asher, Liberty Mutual chief distribution and marketing officer, U.S. retail markets. “Importantly, this will significantly simplify our business, allow us to dedicate our considerable marketing power behind a single brand, and enable us to leverage and scale our technology to deliver unified but differentiated products and experiences across channels."

“The Safeco legacy is one of strength, partnership and an unwavering commitment to independent agents," added Luke Bills, president, independent agent distribution. “We will carry that legacy forward and will bring our agents even greater value with this brand change."

Since acquiring Safeco in 2008, Liberty Mutual has maintained the brand name for its home, property and specialty lines of business in the independent agent channel. Over that time, Safeco has grown to more than $13 billion in written premium, offering personal auto, property and specialty products in 48 states through a network of more than 22,000 independent agencies.

Safeco was founded in Seattle by Hawthorne K. Dent as the General Insurance Company of America, commonly known at the time as “The General," in 1923.

Decades later in 1953, The General formed a new auto-focused subsidiary, SAFECO, which was built to cater to independent agents. SAFECO stood for Selective Auto and Fire Insurance Company of America. An extra “E" was added to the name because SAFCO didn't sound quite right, according to the company. Fifteen years later, the subsidiary was so successful that The General changed its name to Safeco in 1968.

“The company has a rich heritage in partnering with independent agents," Asher said during a 2023 interview with Independent Agent magazine. “When Hawthorne K. Dent went into the business, he was considered a maverick at the time because his approach was to only sell through independent agents."

In November 2024, Safeco Insurance, a Liberty Mutual company, entered into a book transfer agreement with Main Street America Insurance for its personal lines book. The eligible renewal book covered by the agreement represented auto, home, renters, condo, umbrella, landlord, motorcycle and RV.

The deal enabled Safeco to grow its personal lines presence in 22 states as Main Street America Insurance shifts to focus exclusively on commercial lines.

In 2021, Liberty Mutual announced it had agreed to buy State Auto, a super-regional insurance company based in Ohio. The acquisition significantly expanded Liberty Mutual's position as an industry leader for personal lines and small commercial insurance and will bolster the independent agent network.

Through the deal, Liberty Mutual added $2.3 billion in premium and State Auto's network of approximately 3,400 independent agencies across 33 states. The acquisition made Liberty Mutual the second largest independent agency carrier in the U.S.

Will Jones is IA editor-in-chief.