Consumers County Mutual auto insurance

Overview

Consumers County Mutual Insurance Company (CCM) is a Dallas-based county mutual insurer that most drivers meet only as a name in the fine print of a Travelers auto policy issued in Texas. It ranked #51 among U.S. private passenger auto insurers by 2025 direct premiums written according to NAIC market share data, with $595.2 million in premiums, or 0.16% of the national market.

That ranking reflects whose legal paper the policies are written on, not a consumer brand. CCM does not advertise or sell auto insurance under its own name and has no consumer website. Travelers states on its own disclosure pages that automobile insurance in Texas is offered through Travelers Texas MGA, Inc. and underwritten by Consumers County Mutual, and that CCM "is not a Travelers Company." Because CCM is not owned by Travelers, the NAIC counts its premiums as a separate group rather than folding them into Travelers' total. In practice you buy from a Travelers agent or Travelers directly, pay Travelers, and file claims with Travelers, but the insurer named on your Texas policy is CCM. In insurance terms CCM is a fronting carrier.

History

County mutuals are a Texas-only form of insurer, authorized by state law since 1937. A 2000 legal review by the Thompson Coe law firm reported that county mutuals held 26.2% of Texas private passenger auto premiums in 1999. Their appeal to larger carriers was regulatory: for decades county mutual rates and classifications were not set by the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI). Senate Bill 14, effective December 1, 2004, moved the market to a file-and-use system and removed much of that advantage, but many national insurers kept their county mutual arrangements in place.

The TDI statistical plan for private passenger auto describes the arrangement plainly. Some county mutuals operate as ordinary insurers, while others "sell their paper" to a managing general agent (MGA). The MGA sets the underwriting guidelines and rates, arranges reinsurance (usually 100%), and pays the county mutual a fee to sell policies in its name. TDI calls this relationship fronting.

CCM's public footprint follows that model. Travelers' producer compensation disclosure lists CCM as the underwriter for Travelers' Texas personal auto business (through Travelers MGA, Inc. and Travelers Texas MGA, Inc.), for its Northland Transportation trucking program and for commercial auto sold through Travelers MGA, Inc. A Travelers loss-payee certificate form for Texas, copyrighted 2023 and posted by TDI, carries the CCM name and states that the coverage is "100% reinsured by Northland Insurance Company," part of Travelers' transportation business. The only programs CCM is publicly tied to are these Travelers programs.

Auto insurance coverage

The coverage on a CCM policy is Travelers' Texas personal auto product, designed and priced by Travelers. It includes liability, personal injury protection, uninsured/underinsured motorist, collision and comprehensive coverage, plus the optional add-ons Travelers offers through its agents. Limits, endorsements and eligibility are set in the Travelers program. Your agent or Travelers customer service can tell you which options apply to your policy. Your declarations page will name Consumers County Mutual as the company.

Discounts and programs

Discounts are Travelers' discounts. Its car insurance discount page lists multi-policy, multicar, home ownership, safe driver, continuous insurance, hybrid/electric car, new car, EFT/pay-in-full/good payer, early quote, good student, student away at school and driver training discounts, with some exclusions in California, New York, Maryland and Washington that do not affect Texas.

Travelers' usage-based program, IntelliDrive 365, is listed as available in Texas. It uses a smartphone app to score driving behavior, and Travelers states that individual driving data is used to rate policies and that not every policy will see savings.

Claims

Claims on CCM-underwritten Travelers policies are handled through Travelers. Travelers lists 800-252-4633 for personal insurance claims, 24 hours a day, with roadside assistance on the same number (option 3). Claims can also be reported and tracked through a MyTravelers online account. Payments go to Travelers Personal Insurance, not to CCM.

Ratings and reputation

The financial strength that matters most on a fronted policy is the reinsurer's, because a 100% reinsurance agreement means the reinsurer, not the fronting county mutual, ultimately funds the claims. CCM itself remains legally responsible to policyholders, which is why its name is on the policy. CCM is not included in J.D. Power's auto insurance studies as a brand; Travelers is.

CCM has faced litigation in its own name. According to Consumer Action's class action tracker, CCM settled Hyder and Schladant v. Consumers County Mutual Insurance Company (Travis County District Court, No. D-1-GN-16-000596). The case covered personal injury protection claims that were denied because another insurer had paid the medical bills, for claims from March 14, 2012, to March 13, 2019. The claim deadline was September 13, 2019. Complaints about a CCM policy can be filed with TDI under CCM's name.

Who it suits

CCM is not something you shop for. It matters if you hold or are buying a Travelers auto policy in Texas and want to know why another company's name is on your ID card. For most purposes you deal with Travelers. When you file a complaint with TDI, look up a company record, or read court and regulatory documents, the name to use is Consumers County Mutual Insurance Company.

• Strengths: Backed by a Travelers reinsurance arrangement; access to Travelers' Texas product, discounts and IntelliDrive 365; claims and service run through Travelers' national operation.
• Weaknesses: The name on the policy differs from the brand you bought, which can confuse claimants and lienholders; no consumer website or service line of its own; past class action over denied PIP claims (2012–2019 claims period).

How to contact Consumers County Mutual

CCM does not publish its own customer phone lines. Travelers services the Texas auto policies it underwrites.