Last Look 2019: The Private Passenger Auto Insurance Marketplace in Massachusetts

A bi-monthly look at this highly competitive marketplace throughout the year

The latest numbers on the state of the 2019 private passenger auto insurance marketplace in Massachusetts are out. As always, the data presented here is provided courtesy of the Commonwealth Automobile Reinsurers, the statistical agent for motor vehicle insurance in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

All tables and graphs below reflect the current state of the market as of SEPTEMBER 2019, the latest date for which complete data on the private passenger auto insurance marketplace is available.

An overview of the private passenger marketplace in Massachusetts

The following is the latest data from the Division of Insurance (2017) with respect to the official state of the Private Passenger Auto Insurance Marketplace in Massachusetts.

Largest Auto Insurer Writers in Massachusetts

The Total Direct Written Premium for all 52 insurers in the private passenger auto insurance marketplace in 2017 was $5,188,109,343.
The top 20 insurers enjoy a 90.1% share of the marketplace.
Total Direct Written Premium for the top 20 writers totaled $4,673,828,363 in 2017.
The remaining 32 companies claimed Total Direct Written Premium of $514,280,980 representing a 9.9% market share

For those interested in reviewing or comparing this marketplace with the Private Passenger Auto Insurance Marketplace as a whole, as well as a ranking of the largest insurers by Direct Written Premium and market share, please refer to the following Market Share Reports, Agency Checklists has published:

Shift and trends of note during this latest look at the private passenger auto insurance marketplace

The major trend Agency Checklists has been tracking in the private passenger auto insurance marketplace is GEICO’s continuing growth as the second-largest private passenger auto insurer in Massachusetts. In looking at the CAR Reports from January of 2019 versus September 2019, the on-line direct writer started the year with a 10.75% market share with that percentage increasing to 13.29% as of September. Looking at the final numbers for 2018, GEICO had 11.95% proving that the insurer continues to increase its market share here.

As for the Commonwealth’s largest insurer, MAPFRE/Commerce, the Webster-based company had a 24.59% market share at the end of 2018 representing a healthy lead over the second-place GEICO. As of September 2019, while it appears it may have ceded some percentage points, it more or less has maintained its significant lead.

COMPANY NAME	EXPOSURES	MARKET SHARE
1. COMMERCE/MAPFRE	878,988	23.69%
2. GEICO	492,942	13.29%
3. SAFETY	327,921	8.84%
4. LIBERTY MUTUAL	321,306	8.66%
5. ARBELLA	292,051	7.87%
6. PLYMOUTH ROCK	232,225	6.26%
7. PROGRESSIVE	174,586	4.71%
8. U S A A	135,437	3.65%
9. STANDARD FIRE	128,099	3.45%
10. METROPOLITAN	121,520	3.28%
11. AMICA MUTUAL	119,116	3.21%
12. HANOVER	109,335	2.95%
13. QUINCY MUTUAL	62,436	1.68%
14. ALLSTATE	58,862	1.59%
15. VERMONT MUTUAL	42,361	1.14%
16. NORFOLK AND DEDHAM MUTUAL	42,024	1.13%
17. NATIONAL GRANGE	34,551	0.93%
18. PREFERRED MUTUAL	23,509	0.63%
19. OCCIDENTAL INS	19,121	0.52%
20. STATE FARM	16,526	0.45%
21. GREEN MOUNTAIN	11,772	0.32%
22. INTEGON	11,484	0.31%
23. BANKERS STANDARD	9,828	0.26%
24. IDS	9,043	0.24%
25. ELECTRIC	8,498	0.23%
26. ESURANCE	7,742	0.21%
27. PURE	6,901	0.19%
28. FARM FAMILY	6,179	0.17%
29. AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL	2,700	0.07%
30. HARLEYSVILLE WORCESTER	1,443	0.04%
31. TRUMBULL	1,431	0.04%
32. MIDDLESEX	8	0.00%
	3,709,945	100%

The Private Passenger Auto Insurance Marketplace’s shifts and trends over the decade…

In order to give some perspective on the shifts in the marketplace over the past decade, the following three graphs depict the Top Ten Private Passenger insurers as of September 2019, followed by a graph from five years ago in September 2014, as well as another one from ten years ago in September 2009.

The goal is to present a more complete perspective on how the Massachusetts automobile insurance market has shifted during the past five and ten years, which includes the second year of “Managed Competition.”