Traders Insurance auto insurance

Overview

Traders Insurance is a small, privately owned auto insurer based in Kansas City, Missouri. Its insurance carrier, Traders Insurance Company, is a Missouri-domiciled stock company. It ranked #91 among U.S. private passenger auto insurers by 2025 direct premiums written, with $162.5 million and a 0.04% national market share, according to NAIC market share data. The company describes car insurance for individuals and families as its one core product; it also sells a renters policy.

Traders sells only through independent agents in five states: Arkansas, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma. Quotes and new policies come through agents, and policy changes are also requested through the agent. The company's pitch to agents is low-cost coverage for budget-minded drivers, with both credit-scored and non-credit-scored auto programs, which places it in the nonstandard auto insurance and economy end of the market rather than among preferred-risk carriers.

History

Traders traces its roots to 1976, when Concannon & Associates was established to provide insurance management services: sales, underwriting, policy service, billing, collections and claims, with local knowledge of its markets. Over time the business narrowed to a single product, car insurance. The Concannon family controlled the company for its first three decades. In 2002 the Missouri Department of Insurance approved Mark C. Concannon becoming the ultimate controlling person of Traders Insurance Company through the family's holding company, the Concannon Group of Companies.

In 2007 Missouri approved the sale of control of Traders to Brooke Corporation, a publicly traded insurance agency franchisor based in Overland Park, Kansas. Brooke bought Delta Plus Holdings, the Kansas City holding company that owned Traders Insurance Connection, Traders Insurance Company and Professional Claims, Inc., on March 30, 2007. Brooke's 2007 annual report described Traders as a writer of nonstandard private passenger auto liability and physical damage insurance in Arkansas, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma and New Mexico, with about 41% of 2007 premium in Oklahoma, 26% in Kansas and 24% in Missouri. Brooke and its subsidiary Brooke Capital filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on October 28, 2008.

Today Traders again describes itself as a privately owned Midwest company, and its website carries the name of Traders General Agency, Inc. New Mexico is no longer in its footprint; Indiana has been added.

Auto insurance coverage

Traders' website describes its auto policy only in general terms: it pays when someone is injured in an accident you cause, when a car is stolen, and when you are hit by a driver who has no insurance. In other words, the core policy combines liability, physical damage (collision and comprehensive) and uninsured motorist protection, and lienholders can verify coverage on financed cars through a dedicated portal. The company's posted forms add these options:

• Rental reimbursement
• Towing and labor
• Roadside assistance, an optional endorsement provided by Agero

The roadside endorsement covers towing up to $100 (usually about 25 miles), jump-starts, fuel delivery (you pay for the fuel), lockout service and flat-tire changes. Use is capped at one call per service type in any seven-day period and three calls per six-month policy. Policy forms are state-specific; the Arkansas set includes an optional coverage rejection form and a driver exclusion form, the kind of excluded driver agreement common in budget auto policies that removes a household member from coverage to lower the price. Ask the agent for the policy form for your state to see exactly what is covered. Traders also sells a Renters Value Plan for apartment and rental-home tenants.

Discounts and programs

Traders does not publish a list of auto discounts. Its agent materials say both its credit-scored and non-credit-scored programs carry discounts, so ask the agent which ones apply. The clearest savings it advertises is on billing: enrolling in Auto Pay (bank draft or card) avoids some installment service charges. You can also pay online or by phone 24 hours a day, by mail, or in cash at your agent's office or at participating retail bill-pay counters. No telematics or usage-based insurance program is advertised.

Claims

Claims can be reported around the clock to the claims hotline at 816-333-5030, online through the company's claim-report page, or by email. The claim-reporting page also lists 800-383-1357, and the main line (800-369-0369) can route claim calls. Traders asks policyholders to photograph the scene and all vehicles, get the other drivers' insurance details, call the police, and not admit fault; if another insurer or a lawyer contacts you, refer them to your Traders claims representative. The company partners with Enterprise Rent-A-Car for rentals and runs an online photo-submission tool for vehicle pictures. Roadside calls go to Agero at 877-507-2417.

Ratings and reputation

Traders does not cite a financial strength rating on its website, and AM Best has published no rating announcements on Traders Insurance Company. (International Traders Insurance Co., which AM Best does rate, is an unrelated company in the Turks and Caicos Islands.) Traders is not among the insurers ranked in J.D. Power's 2026 U.S. Auto Insurance Study for the Central region, which covers Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma, or the North Central region, which includes Indiana. Because the company is small, check your state insurance department's complaint records and ask your agent about the insurer's financial standing before you buy; the guide to AM Best ratings explains how to read financial strength ratings.

Who it suits

Traders suits cost-focused drivers in its five states who want minimum-limits or basic full coverage, prefer to deal with a local agent, and may not qualify for or want a preferred carrier. Drivers with spotty credit can ask about the non-credit-scored program. It is a poor fit for anyone outside Arkansas, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma, for drivers who want to quote and buy online, and for households that want home, auto and life from one company.

• Strengths: Roots in Midwest auto insurance going back to 1976; credit-scored and non-credit-scored programs; 24-hour claims line and online claim reporting; flexible payment options including cash at agents.
• Weaknesses: Sold in only five states; no direct online purchase; no published discount list or telematics program; no publicly announced AM Best rating.

How to contact Traders Insurance