For many years the growing insurance industry was not very eclectic or eccentric in its practices. The leading companies stayed well within the lines, with everything dotted, crossed, and pretty much the same. But the winds of change were beginning to move, and not in the way most would have assumed. The Safeco auto insurance company was soon to be born.
Way Back When...
Hawthorne Dent was quite possibly the kind of man who would have not only stared down the barrel of a gun, but he probably would have laughed hysterically. Was he crazy? Was this just another thrill-seeking dare devil? In the business world he might as well have been. Hawthorne Dent was a seasoned insurance executive who saw a need for change within the industry he worked for so many years. In 1923 Dent opened the doors to what would later be known as Safeco auto and fire insurance.
He burst out of the gate defying the normal and standard insurance practices by creating a company owned by the people that also took risks by underwriting policies for the people. He also broke even further from tradition by setting up shop in Seattle instead of the East Coast.
What sets Safeco auto insurance apart from the rest? They were really the first to offer cost effective insurance policies and unbelievable customer service when everyone else in the business said they would not last. Apparently the popular mode of thinking was that a decent auto insurance policy needed to take a sizeable slice out of your paycheck in order to be good. This is where Safeco auto insurance was vastly different; you got to keep your arms, both legs, and all of your fingers and toes.
Originally known as General Insurance Company, obtaining an auto insurance policy from Safeco was fast, inexpensive, and with the kind of personal interaction and attention that customers should have been experiencing all along. Safeco auto insurance was definitely the little tug boat that could. With the company gaining a solid niche in the business world on the western side of the country, their name officially changed to Selective Auto and Fire Insurance Company of America. This was shortened to the acronym Safeco.
Safeco is a thriving giant in the insurance industry today. There have been some ups and downs, and some changes to the inner workings of the company. But the original spirit of Hawthorne Dent remains; putting the people first. The customer has been, and will continue to be the top priority.
