MetLife, Inc. has announced the completion of its previously announced sale of Metropolitan Property and Casualty Insurance Company and certain wholly-owned subsidiaries to Farmers Group, Inc., a subsidiary of Zurich Insurance Group.
First reported in November, the $3.94 billion deal sees Farmers Group jointly acquire MetLife Auto & Home with the Farmers Exchanges, a group of three reciprocal insurers.
At the same time, MetLife and Farmers Exchange have established a 10-year strategic partnership under which Farmers Insurance will provide personal lines products on MetLife’s U.S. Group Benefits platform, which reaches some 3,800 employees and roughly 37 million eligible employees.
Farmers assumes responsibility for MetLife’s previous retail property and casualty clients.
Ramy Tadros, president, U.S. Business, MetLife, commented: “We look forward to continuing to deliver a broad range of benefits that meet the needs of our group customers, maintaining strong relationships with our distribution partners, and ensuring employees across the U.S. have access to auto and home coverage through our relationship with Farmers.”
For Farmers, the closure of this acquisition provides the brand with significant opportunity to expand its reach with a truly national presence, grow its core property and casualty operation and bolster its position as a leading personal lines carrier in the U.S.
Jeff Dailey, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for Farmers Group, Inc., said: “The completion of this transaction represents a new milestone in our organization’s nearly 100-year history that will help accelerate growth, diversify our distribution and position Farmers for the future.
“Farmers-branded products will now be available nationwide, providing consumers from coast to coast with more choices and opportunities to engage with Farmers when shopping for auto and home coverage.”
