SAFETY INSURANCE GROUP INC - Annual Report: 2009 (Form 10-K)

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UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

Commission file number 000-50070

SAFETY INSURANCE GROUP, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

         Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes o    No ý

         Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 of Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes o    No ý

         Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ý    No o

         Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulations S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes o    No o

         Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K (§ 229.405 of this chapter) is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant's knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. ý

         Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See definitions of "large accelerated filer," "accelerated filer," and "smaller reporting company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):

         Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes o    No ý

         The aggregate market value of the registrant's voting and non-voting common equity (based on the closing sales price on NASDAQ) held by non-affiliates of the registrant as of June 30, 2009, was approximately $427,049,535.

         As of March 9, 2010, there were 15,143,937 Common Shares with a par value of $0.01 per share outstanding.

Documents Incorporated by Reference

         Portions of the registrant's definitive proxy statement for its Annual Meeting of Shareholders to be held on May 21, 2010, which Safety Insurance Group, Inc. (the "Company", "we", "our", "us") intends to file within 120 days after its December 31, 2009 year-end, are incorporated by reference into Part II and Part III hereof.

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SAFETY INSURANCE GROUP, INC.

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        In this Form 10-K, all dollar amounts are presented in thousands, except average premium, average claim and per claim data, share, and per share data.

PART I.

ITEM 1.    BUSINESS

General

        We are a leading provider of private passenger automobile insurance in Massachusetts. In addition to private passenger automobile insurance (which represented 69.2% of our direct written premiums in 2009), we offer a portfolio of property and casualty insurance products, including commercial automobile, homeowners, dwelling fire, umbrella and business owner policies. Operating virtually exclusively in Massachusetts through our insurance subsidiaries, Safety Insurance Company ("Safety Insurance"), Safety Indemnity Insurance Company ("Safety Indemnity") and Safety Property and Casualty Insurance Company ("Safety P&C") (together referred to as the "Insurance Subsidiaries"), we have established strong relationships with independent insurance agents, who numbered 861 in 999 locations throughout Massachusetts during 2009. We have used these relationships and our extensive knowledge of the Massachusetts market to become the second largest private passenger automobile carrier, capturing an approximate 11.3% share of the Massachusetts private passenger automobile insurance market, and the third largest commercial automobile carrier, with an 11.0% share of the Massachusetts commercial automobile insurance market, in 2009 according to statistics compiled by Commonwealth Automobile Reinsurers ("CAR"). In addition, we were also ranked the 49^th largest automobile writer in the country according to A.M. Best, based on 2008 direct written premiums. We were incorporated under the laws of Delaware in 2001, but through our predecessors, we have underwritten insurance in Massachusetts since 1979.

        We have maintained profitability in part by managing our cost structure through, for example, the use of technology. Our share of the Massachusetts private passenger automobile insurance market has grown from 11.0% in 2004 to 11.3% in 2009 and we have continued to expand our product offerings. Our direct written premiums decreased by 2.4% between 2008 and 2009. This decrease was largely as a result of rate decreases totaling 6.7% which we filed during 2008 under the competitive pricing system introduced to the private passenger automobile market in Massachusetts beginning April 1, 2008. We offer additional discounts, such as when policyholders have maintained continuous coverage with us or buy other policies from us, among other things.

        Our Insurance Subsidiaries began writing private passenger automobile and homeowners insurance in New Hampshire on October 15, 2008. For the year ended December 31, 2009, we wrote approximately 1,250 policies and $978 in direct written premiums in New Hampshire.

Website Access to Information

        The Internet address for our website is www.SafetyInsurance.com. All of our press releases and United States Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") reports are available for viewing or download at our website. These documents are made available on our website as soon as reasonably practicable after each press release is made and SEC report is filed with, or furnished to, the SEC. Copies of any current public information about our company are available without charge upon written, telephone, faxed or e-mailed request to the Office of Investor Relations, Safety Insurance Group, Inc., 20 Custom House Street, Boston, MA 02110, Tel: 877-951-2522, Fax: 617-603-4837, or e-mail: InvestorRelations@SafetyInsurance.com. The materials on our website are not part of this report on Form 10-K nor are they incorporated by reference into this report and the URL above is intended to be an inactive textual reference only.

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Our Competitive Strengths

        We Have Strong Relationships with Independent Agents.    In 2008, independent agents accounted for approximately 78.7% of the Massachusetts automobile insurance market measured by direct written premiums as compared to only about 36.0% nationwide, according to A.M. Best. For that reason, our strategy is centered around, and we sell exclusively through, a network of independent agents, who numbered 861 (of which 2 are Exclusive Representative Producers ["ERPs"] assigned to us under regulations that have been phased out April 1, 2009, as discussed below) in 999 locations throughout Massachusetts during 2009. In order to support our independent agents and enhance our relationships with them, we:

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Provide our agents with a portfolio of property and casualty insurance products at competitive prices to help our agents address effectively the insurance needs of their clients;



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Provide our agents with a variety of technological resources which enable us to deliver superior service and support to them; and



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Offer our agents competitive commission schedules and profit sharing programs.

        Through these measures, we strive to become the preferred provider of the independent agents in our agency network and capture a growing share of the total insurance business written by these agents in Massachusetts. We must compete with other insurance carriers for the business of independent agents.

        We Have an Uninterrupted Record of Profitable Operations.    In every year since our inception in 1979, we have been profitable. We have achieved our profitability, among other things, by:

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Maintaining the number of private passenger automobile exposures we underwrite from 459,133 in 2004 to 455,162 in 2009;



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Maintaining a statutory combined ratio that is typically below industry averages (refer to Insurance Ratios under Item 7—Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, Liquidity and Capital Resources for a discussion on statutory insurance ratios);



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Taking advantage of the institutional knowledge our management has amassed during our long operating history in the unique Massachusetts market;



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Introducing new lines and forms of insurance products;



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Investing in technology to simplify internal processes and enhance our relationships with our agents; and



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Maintaining a high-quality investment portfolio.

        We Are a Technological Leader.    We have dedicated significant human and financial resources to the development of advanced information systems. Our technology efforts have benefited us in two distinct ways. First, we continue to develop technology that empowers our independent agent customers to make it easier for them to transact business with their clients and with the Insurance Subsidiaries. In our largest business line, private passenger automobile insurance, our agents now submit approximately 99% of all applications for new policies or endorsements for existing policies to us electronically through our proprietary information portal, the Agents Virtual Community ("AVC"). Our agents can also submit commercial automobile and homeowners insurance policies electronically over AVC. Second, our investment in technology has allowed us to re-engineer internal back office processes to provide more efficient service at lower cost.

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        We Have an Experienced, Committed and Knowledgeable Management Team.    Our senior management team owns approximately 8% of the common stock of Safety Insurance Group, Inc. on a fully diluted basis. Our senior management team, led by our President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board, David F. Brussard, has an average of over 30 years of industry experience per executive, as well as an average of over 28 years of experience with Safety. The team has demonstrated an ability to operate successfully within the regulated Massachusetts private passenger automobile insurance market.

Our Strategy

        To achieve our goal of increasing shareholder value, our strategy is to maintain and develop strong independent agent relationships by providing our agents with a full package of insurance products and information technology services. We believe this strategy will allow us to:

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Further penetrate the Massachusetts private passenger, commercial automobile and homeowners insurance markets;



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Implement rates, forms and billing options that allow us to cross-sell homeowners, dwelling fire, personal umbrella in the personal lines market and business owner policies, commercial property package and commercial umbrella in the commercial lines market in order to capture a larger share of the total Massachusetts property and casualty insurance business written by each of our independent agents; and



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Continue to expand our technology to enable independent agents to more easily serve their customers and conduct business with us, thereby strengthening their relationships with us.

The Massachusetts Property and Casualty Insurance Market

        Introduction.    We are licensed by the Commissioner to transact property and casualty insurance in Massachusetts. All of our business is extensively regulated by the Commissioner.

        The Massachusetts Market for Private Passenger Automobile Insurance.    Private passenger automobile insurance has been heavily regulated in Massachusetts. In many respects, the private passenger automobile insurance market in Massachusetts prior to 2008 was unique, in comparison to other states. This was due to a number of factors, including unusual regulatory conditions, the market dominance of domestic companies, the relative absence of large national companies, and the heavy reliance on independent insurance agents as the market's principal distribution channel. For many insurance companies, these factors presented substantial challenges, but we believe they provided us a competitive advantage, because, as our financial history shows, we have a thorough understanding of this market.

        Changes to the Regulation of Private Passenger Automobile Insurance in Massachusetts.    Since 1977, the Commissioner fixed and established the premium rates that all insurers must use in the Massachusetts private passenger automobile insurance market. Since 1982, CAR has managed the residual market for private passenger automobile insurance using a reinsurance mechanism. On July 16, 2007, the Commissioner issued two decisions that significantly changed these two long standing approaches to how private passenger automobile insurance is regulated in Massachusetts. In the first decision, the Commissioner announced that she would not fix and establish the maximum premium rates that can be charged for private passenger automobile insurance policies issued or renewed after April 1, 2008. In a letter accompanying the decision, the Commissioner stated that in place of the "fixed and established" system, she would permit companies to file their own premium rates for approval by the Commissioner, under a system that the Commissioner has characterized as "managed competition" ("Managed Competition").

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        The Commissioner took additional steps to implement this decision. First, with respect to allowing competitive pricing, the Commissioner promulgated new regulations setting the terms and conditions that insurers must comply with in establishing their rates to be effective April 1, 2008. The regulation contains a list of prohibited factors, including a prohibition of the use of credit information in rating or underwriting. The Commissioner also issued a number of bulletins providing guidance on various issues, including regulatory review standards, discounts, product form, endorsement, and new business application standards and classification plan requirements. Pursuant to this authority, we filed for various rate changes for policies issued and renewed on or after April 1, 2008.

        In the second decision, the Commissioner approved and set a time table for the implementation of new CAR rules pursuant to which the former reinsurance program run by CAR has been replaced with an assigned risk plan known as the Massachusetts Automobile Insurance Plan ("MAIP"). Under these new rules, as of April 1, 2009 we no longer are assigned ERPs whose business we must insure (subject to the option of ceding it to CAR) and instead, we are assigned individual policies by CAR. The MAIP began with business effective on or after April 1, 2008 for new business and those risks that have 10 or more Safe Driver Points. Beginning April 1, 2009, all business was eligible for MAIP except those risks that have no violations or accidents in the preceding three year period (so called "Clean in three" risks). The last policy effective date on which any risk could be ceded to CAR in accordance with the current reinsurance program was March 31, 2009. Under MAIP, policies will be assigned to us for three years, unless the policyholder is offered a voluntary policy by another insurer. We are not able at this time to determine what effect these new CAR rules will have on our business over the longer term.

        These decisions remove many of the factors that have historically distinguished the Massachusetts private passenger automobile insurance market from that market in other states such as the use of a standard policy form, the use of a single safe driver insurance plan, and the role of ERPs and CAR.

        However, certain of the historically unique factors related to the Massachusetts private passenger automobile insurance market have not been eliminated, including compulsory insurance, affinity group marketing, and the prominence of independent agents.

Products

        Historically, we have focused on underwriting private passenger automobile insurance, which is written through our subsidiary, Safety Insurance. In 1989, we formed Safety Indemnity to offer commercial automobile insurance at preferred rates. Since 1997, we have expanded the breadth of our product line in order for agents to address a greater portion of their clients' insurance needs by selling multiple products. Homeowners, business owners policies, personal umbrella, dwelling fire and commercial umbrella insurance are written by Safety Insurance at standard rates, and written by Safety Indemnity at preferred rates. In December 2006, we formed Safety P&C to offer homeowners and commercial automobile insurance at ultra preferred rates. The table below shows our premiums in each

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of these product lines for the periods indicated and the portions of our total premiums each product line represented.

        Our product lines are as follows:

        Private Passenger Automobile (69.2% of 2009 direct written premiums).    Private passenger automobile insurance is our primary product, and we support all Massachusetts policy forms and limits of coverage. Private passenger automobile policies provide coverage for bodily injury and property damage to others, no-fault personal injury coverage for the insured/insured's car occupants, and physical damage coverage for an insured's own vehicle for collision or other perils. We have priced our private passenger coverage competitively by offering group discounts since 1995 and we currently offer approximately 183 affinity group discount programs ranging from 3% to 8% discounts. Under Massachusetts' Managed Competition regulations, we offer various new discounts including a discount of 10% when a private passenger policy is issued along with a non private passenger policy with us, a longevity/renewal credit of up to 4% for policyholders who maintain continuous coverage with us, and a 7% e-Customer discount for policyholders who want electronic policy issuance with one combined bill with their other policies. We began using four rating tiers effective January 1, 2010. A Companion Policy Client Tier, which is policyholders that have a non private passenger automobile policy with us, receives a rate decrease of 2.5% from our filed base rates. A Loyal Automobile Client Tier, which is policyholders who have been insured with Safety two or more years, receives our filed base rates. A New Insurance Client Tier, which is policyholders with 12 or more months of continuous coverage or who qualify for a multi-car discount, receives a rate increase of 2.5% from our filed base rates. A New Policyholder Tier, which is policyholders that don't qualify for the other three tiers, receives MAIP rates.

        Commercial Automobile (12.0% of 2009 direct written premiums).    Our commercial automobile program supports all Massachusetts policy forms and limits of coverage including endorsements that broaden coverage over and above that offered on the standard Massachusetts policy forms. Commercial automobile policies provide coverage for bodily injury and property damage to others, no-fault personal injury coverage, and physical damage coverage for an insured's own vehicle for collision or other perils resulting from the ownership or use of commercial vehicles in a business. We offer insurance for commercial vehicles used for business purposes such as private passenger-type vehicles, trucks, tractors and trailers, and insure individual vehicles as well as commercial fleets. Commercial automobile policies are written at a standard rate through Safety Insurance. We did not file for rate changes during 2007, 2008 or 2009. Qualifying risks eligible for preferred rates are written through Safety Indemnity which uses rates that are 20% lower than Safety Insurance. Effective December 1, 2007, qualifying risks eligible for ultra preferred rates are written through Safety P&C which uses rates that are 35% lower than Safety Insurance.

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        Homeowners (14.7% of 2009 direct written premiums).    We offer a broad selection of coverage forms for qualified policyholders. Homeowners policies provide coverage for losses to a dwelling and its contents from numerous perils, and coverage for liability to others arising from ownership or occupancy. We write policies on homes, condominiums, and apartments. We offer loss-free credits of up to 16% for eight years of loss free experience, an account credit of up to 20% when a home is written together with an automobile, and a 7% e-Customer discount for policyholders who want electronic policy issuance with one combined bill with their other policies. We received approval for a rate increase of 1.6% effective May 1, 2008. All forms of homeowners coverage are written at a standard rate through Safety Insurance. Qualifying risks eligible for preferred rates are written through Safety Indemnity which uses rates that are 13% lower than Safety Insurance. Effective September 1, 2007, qualifying risks eligible for ultra preferred rates are written through Safety P&C which uses rates that are 22% lower than Safety Insurance.

        Business Owners Policies (2.6% of 2009 direct written premiums).    We serve eligible small and medium sized commercial accounts with a program that covers apartments and residential condominiums; mercantile establishments, including limited cooking restaurants; offices, including office condominiums; processing and services businesses; special trade contractors; and wholesaling businesses. Business owner policies provide liability and property coverage for many perils, including business interruption from a covered loss. Equipment breakdown coverage is automatically included, and a wide range of additional coverage is available to qualified customers. We write policies for business owners at standard rates with qualifying risks eligible for preferred lower rates.

        Commercial Package Policies (Included in our Business Owners Policies direct written premiums).    For larger commercial accounts, or those clients that require more specialized or tailored coverages, we offer a commercial package policy program that covers a more extensive range of business enterprises. Commercial package policies provide any combination of property, general liability, crime and inland marine insurance. Property automatically includes equipment breakdown coverage, and a wide range of additional coverage is available to qualified customers. We write commercial package policies at standard rates with qualifying risks eligible for preferred lower rates.

        Personal Umbrella (0.6% of 2009 direct written premiums).    We offer personal excess liability coverage over and above the limits of individual automobile, watercraft, and homeowner's insurance policies to clients. We offer a discount (account credit) of 10% when an umbrella policy is written together with an automobile insurance policy. We write policies at standard rates with limits of $1,000 to $5,000.

        Dwelling Fire (0.7% of 2009 direct written premiums).    We underwrite dwelling fire insurance, which is a limited form of a homeowner's policy for non-owner occupied residences. We offer superior construction and protective device credits, with a discount (account credit) of 5% when a dwelling fire policy is issued along with an automobile policy. We write all forms of dwelling fire coverage at standard rates with qualifying risks eligible for preferred lower rates.

        Commercial Umbrella (0.2% of 2009 direct written premiums).    We offer an excess liability product to clients for whom we underwrite both commercial automobile and business owner policies. The program is directed at commercial automobile risks with private passenger-type automobiles or light and medium trucks. We write commercial umbrella policies at standard rates with limits ranging from $1,000 to $5,000.

        Inland Marine (Included in our Homeowners direct written premiums).    We offer inland marine coverage as an endorsement for all homeowners and business owner policies, and as part of our commercial package policy. Inland marine provides additional coverage for jewelry, fine arts and other items that a homeowners or business owner policy would limit or not cover. Scheduled items valued at more than $5 must meet our underwriting guidelines and be appraised.

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        Watercraft (Included in our Homeowners direct written premiums).    We offer watercraft coverage for small and medium sized pleasure craft with maximum lengths of 32 feet, valued at less than $75 and maximum speed of 39 knots. We write this coverage as an endorsement to our homeowner's policies.

        In the wake of the September 11, 2001 tragedies, the insurance industry is also impacted by terrorism, and we have filed and received approval for a number of terrorism endorsements from the Commissioner, which limit our liability and property exposure according to the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002, the Terrorism Risk Insurance Extension Act of 2005 and the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007. See "Reinsurance," discussed below.

Distribution

        We distribute our products exclusively through independent agents, unlike some of our competitors, which use multiple distribution channels. We believe this gives us a competitive advantage with the agents. With the exception of our ERPs, we do not accept business from insurance brokers. Our voluntary agents have authority pursuant to our voluntary agency agreement to bind our Insurance Subsidiaries for any coverage that is within the scope of their authority. We reserve the ability under Massachusetts law to cancel any coverage, other than private passenger automobile insurance, within the first 30 days after it is bound. In total, our independent agents (including our ERPs) numbered 861 and had 999 offices (some agencies have more than one office) and approximately 5,613 customer service representatives during 2009.

        Voluntary Agents.    In 2009, we obtained approximately 92.7% of our direct written premiums for automobile insurance and 100% of our direct written premiums for all of our other lines of business through our voluntary agents. As of February 12, 2010, we had agreements with 654 voluntary agents. Our voluntary agents are located in all regions of Massachusetts.

        We look for agents with profitable portfolios of business. To become a voluntary agent for our Company, we generally require that an agency: (i) have been in business for at least five years; (ii) have exhibited a three year private passenger average ratio of losses, excluding loss adjustment expenses, to net earned premiums ("pure loss ratio") of 64.0% or less on the portion of the agent's portfolio that we would underwrite; (iii) make a commitment for us to underwrite at least 300 policies from the agency during the first twelve months after entering an agreement with us; and (iv) offer multiple product lines. Every year, we review the performance of our agents during the prior year. If an agent fails to meet our profitability standards, we try to work with the agent to improve the profitability of the business it places with us. We generally terminate contracts each year with a few agencies, which, despite our efforts, have been consistently unable to meet our standards. Although independent agents usually represent several unrelated insurers, our goal is to be one of the top two insurance companies represented in each of our agencies, as measured by premiums. No individual agency generated more than 3.5% of our direct written premiums in 2009.

        Exclusive Representative Producers.    In 2009, our ERPs generated approximately 7.3% of our direct written premiums for automobile insurance. As of December 31, 2009, we had 2 private passenger automobile ERPs. CAR defines ERPs as licensed dwelling fire or casualty insurance agents or brokers who have a place of business in Massachusetts, but have no existing voluntary independent agency relationship with an automobile insurer conducting business in Massachusetts.

        Massachusetts law guarantees that CAR provides motor vehicle insurance coverage to all qualified applicants. To facilitate this system, under CAR's prior rules, any qualified licensed insurance producer that is unable to obtain a voluntary automobile relationship with an insurer becomes an ERP and is assigned to an insurer, which is then required to write that agent's policies. As noted, the MAIP began April 1, 2008 and was fully implemented by April 1, 2009. Beginning April 1, 2008 all Massachusetts agents (including ERPs) were authorized to submit eligible business to the MAIP for random assignment to a servicing carrier such as Safety Insurance. We began receiving individual policies

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assigned to us from the MAIP on April 1, 2008. As a result of CAR's new rules, effective April 1, 2009 ERPs were no longer assigned to us or any Massachusetts personal automobile insurer, and we have been instead allocated all residual market business through the MAIP.

        CAR runs a reinsurance pool for commercial automobile policies. On January 1, 2006, CAR implemented a Limited Servicing Carrier Program ("LSC") for ceded commercial automobile policies. CAR approved Safety Insurance and five other servicing carriers through a Request for Proposal to process ceded commercial automobile business. Approximately $111,000 is spread equitably among the six servicing carriers. Each Massachusetts commercial automobile insurer must bear a portion of the losses of the commercial reinsurance pool that is serviced by the six servicing carriers in the LSC program. Subject to the Commissioner's review, CAR sets the premium rates for commercial automobile policies reinsured through CAR and this reinsurance pool can generate an underwriting result that is a profit or deficit based upon CAR's rate level. This underwriting result is allocated among every Massachusetts commercial automobile insurance company, including us, based on a company's commercial automobile voluntary market share.

        CAR also runs a reinsurance pool for Taxi, Limousine and Car Service risks (the "Taxi/Limo Program"). On April 25, 2007, Safety submitted through a Request for Proposal a bid to process a portion of the Taxi/Limo Program. CAR approved Safety as one of the two servicing carriers for this program beginning January 1, 2008. Approximately $9,000 of business is spread equitably between the two servicing carriers. The table below shows our direct written exposures in each of our product lines for the periods indicated and the change in exposures for each product line.

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        Our total written exposures increased by 2.4% for the year ended December 31, 2009. The increase was primarily the result of our voluntary agent written exposures increasing by 6.6% and our ERP written exposures decreasing by 35.7%. Our private passenger automobile exposures decreased by 1.1% in 2009 primarily as a result of the decrease of our ERP written exposures due to the transition to MAIP effective April 1, 2008 as discussed above. Our commercial automobile exposures decreased by 5.9% in 2009 primarily as a result of reduced exposures from ERPs submitting business through the CAR LSC program, and general economic conditions which have reduced the size of the overall commercial automobile market in Massachusetts. Our other than auto exposures increased by 22.8% in 2009 primarily as a result of our voluntary agents' efforts to sell multiple products to their clients, and our pricing strategy of offering account discounts to policyholders who insure both their home and automobile with us. In 2009, 30.5% of the private passenger automobile exposures we insure had a non private passenger policy with us as compared to 25.9% in 2008. In addition, 83.9% of our homeowners policyholders had a matching automobile policy with us in 2009, as compared to 79.2% in 2008.

Marketing

        We view the independent agent as our customer and business partner. As a result, a component of our marketing efforts focuses on developing interdependent relationships with leading Massachusetts agents that write profitable business and positioning ourselves as the preferred insurance carrier of those agents, thereby receiving a larger portion of each agent's aggregate business. Our principal marketing strategies to agents are:

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To offer a range of products, which we believe enables our agents to meet the insurance needs of their clients, and overcomes the agent's resistance to placing their clients' automobile, homeowners and other coverages with different insurers;



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To price our products competitively, including offering discounts when and where appropriate for safer drivers and for affinity groups for our personal automobile products, loss free credits for our homeowner products and also offering account discounts for policyholders that have more than one policy with us;



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Our products are designed, priced and marketed to our agents for their customers to place all their insurance with us;



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To offer agents competitive commissions, with incentives for placing their more profitable business with us; and



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To provide a level of support and service that enhances the agent's ability to do business with its clients and with us.

        Beginning in 2007, we started a comprehensive branding campaign using a variety of radio, television, internet and print advertisements.

        Commission Schedule and Profit Sharing Plan.    We have several programs designed to attract profitable new business from agents by paying them more than the minimum commission the law requires for private passenger auto (which is 13.0% of premiums for 2009 and 2010). We recognize our top performing agents by making them members of either our Chairman's Elite, Chairman's, President's, Executive's or Preferred Agent's Club. In 2009, members of these Clubs received a commission of up to 20.0% of premiums for each new private passenger auto policy and up to 29.0% of premiums for each new homeowner policy.

        Further, we have a competitive agency incentive commission program under which we pay agents up to 8.0% of premiums based on the loss ratio on their business.

        We have received no inquiries from the Commissioner relative to how we conduct our contingent commissions and profit sharing programs. The Massachusetts Attorney General did question the

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inclusion of contingent commission expenses in her appeal of our April 1, 2008 private passenger rate filing. The Commissioner ruled on January 25, 2008 that the inclusion of expenses attributable to contingent commissions was reasonable and not prohibited by Massachusetts law.

        Service and Support.    We believe that the level and quality of service and support we provide helps differentiate us from other insurers. We have made a significant investment in information technology designed to facilitate our agents' business. Our AVC website helps agents manage their work efficiently. We provide a substantial amount of information online that agents need to serve their customers, such as information about the status of new policies, bill payments and claims. Providing this type of content reduces the number of customer calls we receive and empowers the agent's customer service representatives by enabling them to respond to customers' inquiries while the customer is on the telephone. Finally, we believe that the knowledge and experience of our employees enhance the quality of support we provide.

Underwriting

        Our underwriting department is responsible for a number of key decisions affecting the profitability of our business, including:

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Pricing of our private passenger automobile product since April 1, 2008;



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Pricing of our commercial automobile, homeowners, dwelling fire, personal umbrella, business owners policies, commercial umbrella and commercial package products;



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Determining underwriting guidelines for all our products; and



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Evaluating whether to accept transfers of a portion of an existing or potential new agent's portfolio from another insurer.

        We are organized into three underwriting units, a separate unit for private passenger automobile, a separate unit for all other personal lines underwriting including homeowners, dwelling fire, personal umbrella and inland marine coverages, and a separate unit for commercial lines, including commercial auto, business owners policies, commercial umbrella and commercial package policies.

        Pricing.    Prior to April 1, 2008 our pricing strategy for private passenger automobile insurance primarily depended on the maximum permitted premium rates and minimum permitted commission levels mandated by the Commissioner. Beginning April 1, 2008 subject to the Commissioner's review, we set rates for our private passenger business using industry loss cost data, our own loss experience, residual market deficits, catastrophe modeling and prices charged by our competitors in the Massachusetts market. Beginning April 1, 2008 subject to Commissioner's review, CAR sets the premium rates for personal automobile policies reinsured through CAR and policies assigned to carriers by the MAIP. However companies may only charge the insured the lower of the CAR/MAIP rate or the company's competitive voluntary market rate. Safety Insurance's approved rate for three of our four rating tiers is lower than the CAR/MAIP rate. We began using four rating tiers effective January 1, 2010. A Companion Policy Client Tier, which is policyholders that have a non private passenger automobile policy with us, receives a rate decrease of 2.5% from our filed base rates. A Loyal Automobile Client Tier, which is policyholders who have been insured with Safety two or more years, receives our filed base rates. A New Insurance Client Tier, which is policyholders with 12 or more months of continuous coverage or who qualify for a multi-car discount, receives a rate increase of 2.5% from our filed base rates. A New Policyholder Tier, which is policyholders that don't qualify for the other three tiers, receives MAIP rates.

        We offer group discounts to members of 183 affinity groups. In general, we target affinity groups with a mature and stable membership base along with favorable driving records, offering between a 3%

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and 8% discount (with 4% being the average discount offered). Approximately 9.0% of the private passenger policies we issue receive an affinity group discount.

        Subject to the Commissioner's review, CAR sets the premium rates for commercial automobile policies reinsured through CAR. Subject to the Commissioner's review, we set rates for commercial automobile policies that are not reinsured through CAR, and for all other insurance lines we offer, including homeowners, dwelling fire, personal umbrella, commercial umbrella, commercial package policies and business owner policies. We base our rates on industry loss cost data, our own loss experience, residual market deficits, catastrophe modeling and prices charged by our competitors in the Massachusetts market. We have three pricing tiers for most products, utilizing Safety Insurance for standard rates, Safety Indemnity for preferred rates and Safety P&C for ultra preferred rates. We received approval for a rate increase of 2.1% for our Safety Insurance commercial automobile line effective December 16, 2004, and did not file for a rate change for the years 2005 through 2009. We received approval for a rate deviation for Safety P&C commercial automobile of 35% below our comparable Safety Insurance rate. We received approval for a rate increase of 1.6% for our homeowners line effective May 1, 2007.

        Cede/Retain Decisions.    Until April 1, 2009 under CAR's prior rules for private passenger policies, we had to decide within 23 days after the effective date of renewing an existing policy whether to cede it to CAR's reinsurance pool. (Effective April 1, 2009, new policies may not be ceded to CAR). Each Massachusetts private passenger automobile insurer must bear a portion of the losses of the private passenger reinsurance pool. Under CAR's prior rules, we were able to reduce our total allocated share of the losses of the reinsurance pool by ceding less business to the pool than our proportionate share. As a result, in determining whether to cede an underpriced policy to CAR's private passenger automobile reinsurance pool, we evaluated whether we were likely to incur greater total losses by ceding it to the pool or by retaining it. According to the January 26, 2010 CAR Cession Volume Analysis—Private Passenger Report, as of November 30, 2009, we had ceded 2.3% of our private passenger automobile business to the pool in 2009, compared to an average of 2.0% for the industry. Our goal was to cede only those policies that incur fewer total losses resulting from a cession to CAR than the total losses incurred by retaining the policy.

        CAR runs a reinsurance pool for commercial automobile policies and beginning January 1, 2006, we became one of six servicing carriers that can service commercial automobile policies for CAR. CAR also runs a reinsurance pool for taxi/limousine/car service commercial automobile policies and beginning January 1, 2008 we became one of two servicing carriers that can service these policies for CAR. All commercial automobile business that is not written in the voluntary market is apportioned to one of the six servicing carriers who handle the business on behalf of CAR or to one of the two servicing carriers who handle the business on behalf of CAR for taxi/limousine/car service business. Each Massachusetts commercial automobile insurer must bear a portion of the losses of the total commercial reinsurance pool that is serviced by the approved servicing carriers.

        Bulk Policy Transfers and New Voluntary Agents.    From time to time, we receive proposals from existing voluntary agents to transfer a portfolio of the agent's business from another insurer to us. Our underwriters model the profitability of these portfolios before we accept these transfers. Among other things, we usually require that the private passenger portion of the portfolio have a pure loss ratio of 64.0% or less on the portion of the agent's portfolio that we would underwrite. In addition, we require any new voluntary agent to commit to transfer a portfolio to us consisting of at least 300 policies.

        Policy Processing and Rate Pursuit.    Our underwriting department assists in processing policy applications, endorsements, renewals and cancellations. For many years, we have used and implemented proprietary software that enables agents to connect to our network and enter policy and endorsement applications for private passenger automobile insurance from their office computers. In our private passenger automobile insurance line, our agents now submit approximately 99% of all applications for

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new policies or endorsements for existing policies through our proprietary information portal, the AVC. During 2007, we introduced propriety software for our commercial automobile and homeowners insurance lines of business that offers the same functionality that we provide in our personal automobile software.

        Our rate pursuit team aggressively monitors all insurance transactions to make sure we receive the correct premium for the risk insured. We accomplish this by verifying Massachusetts pricing criteria, such as proper classification of drivers, the make, model and age of insured vehicles and the availability of discounts. We verify that operators are properly listed and classified, assignment of operators to vehicles, vehicle garaging, vehicle pre-inspection requirements, and in some cases the validity of discounts. In our homeowners and dwelling fire lines, our team has completed a project to update the replacement costs for each dwelling. We use third-party software to assist in these appraisal efforts.

Technology

        The focuses of our information technology effort are:

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to constantly reengineer internal processes to allow more efficient operations, resulting in lower operating costs;



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to make it easier for independent agents to transact business with us; and



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to enable agents to efficiently provide their clients with a high level of service.

        We believe that our technology initiatives have increased revenue and decreased costs. For example, these initiatives have allowed us to reduce the number of call-center transactions which we perform, and to transfer many manual processing functions from our internal operations to our independent agents. We also believe that these initiatives have contributed to our overall increases in productivity. In 1990, we had 399 employees and $154,997 in direct written premiums. As of December 31, 2009, we had 592 employees and $559,747 in direct written premiums, which represents an increase from $388 direct written premiums per employee in 1990 to $946 direct written premiums per employee in 2009.

Internal Applications (Intranet)

        Our employees access our proprietary applications through our corporate intranet. Our intranet applications streamline internal processes and improve overall operational efficiencies in areas including:

        Claims.    Our claims workload management application allows our claims and subrogation adjusters to better manage injury claims. Subrogation refers to the process by which we are reimbursed by other insurers for claims costs we incur due to the fault of their insureds. The use of this application has reduced the time it takes for us to respond to and settle casualty claims, which we believe helps reduce the total amount of our claims expense.

        The automated adjuster assignment system categorizes our new claims by severity and assigns them to the appropriate adjuster responsible for investigation. Once assigned, the integrated workload management tools facilitate the work of promptly assigning appraisers, investigating liability, issuing checks and receiving subrogation receipts.

        The RadicalGlass.com application allows our claims department to contain glass costs by increasing the windshield repair to replacement ratio. For every windshield that is repaired rather than replaced there is an average savings of approximately $289 per windshield claim.

        Our first VIP Claims Center was introduced during 2006 to provide increased service levels to our independent insurance agents and their clients. We currently operate three VIP Claims Centers which

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use a network of rental car centers and auto body repair shops to provide a higher level of service to the clients of the independent insurance agents while reducing costs, such as rental expense, through reduced cycle times.

        Billing.    Proprietary billing systems, integrated with the systems of our print and lock-box vendors, expedite the processing and collection of premium receipts and finance charges from agents and policyholders. We believe the sophistication of our direct bill system helps us to limit our bad debt expense. In both 2009 and 2008 our bad debt expense as a percentage of direct written premiums was 0.2%.

External Applications

        Our Agent Technology offerings helped Safety Insurance earn a number 3 National Ranking and a number 1 Massachusetts Ranking in Deep Customer Connections, Inc.'s 2008 Ease of Doing Business survey. Our Agent Technology offerings are centralized within our agency portal and feature PowerDesk and Safety Express. PowerDesk is a web based application that allows for billing inquiry, payment notification, policy inquiry and claims inquiry. Safety Express provides agents with new business and endorsement entry, real time policy issuance for personal lines, immediate printing of declarations pages in agents' offices, policy downloads to most major agency management systems and data imports from Boston Software's WinRater (Massachusetts) and Vertafore's PL Rater (New Hampshire). In addition Safety provides its agents with commission downloads for all lines of business, Transformation Station and TransactNow Inquires, e-Claims online claims reporting, e-View daily transaction reports and e-Docs online electronic document file cabinet. Safety also provides online bill pay, online declarations pages, billing inquiry, claims inquiry and online auto insurance cards to our agent's policyholders through www.SafetyInsurance.com.

Claims

        Because of the unique differences between the management of casualty claims and property claims, we use separate departments for each of these types of claims.

Casualty Claims

        We have a proven record of settling casualty claims below the industry average in Massachusetts. According to the Automobile Insurers Bureau, our average casualty claim settlement during the period from January 1994 through June 30, 2009, was $5,696, approximately 2.8% lower than the Massachusetts industry average of $5,860.

        We have adopted stringent claims settlement procedures, which include guidelines that establish maximum settlement offers for soft tissue injuries, which constituted approximately 81% of our bodily injury claims in 2009. If we are unable to settle these claims within our guidelines, we generally take the claim to litigation. We believe that these procedures result in providing our adjusters with a uniform approach to negotiation.

        We believe an important component of handling claims efficiently is prompt investigation and settlement. We find that faster claims settlements often result in less expensive claims settlements. Our E-Claim reporting system is an online product that reduces the time it takes for agents to notify our adjusters about claims, thereby enabling us to contact third-party claimants and other witnesses quickly. After business hours we outsource claims adjustment support to an independent firm whose employees contact third-party claimants and other witnesses. We believe that early notification results in our adjusters conducting prompt investigations of claims and compiling more accurate information about those claims. Our claims workload management software also assists our adjusters in handling claims quickly.

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        We believe the structure of our casualty claims unit allows us to respond quickly to claimants anywhere in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Comprising 114 people, the department is organized into distinct claim units that contain loss costs for soft tissue injuries. Field adjusters are located geographically for prompt response to claims, with our litigation unit focused on managing loss costs and litigation expenses for serious injury claims.

        Additionally, we utilize a special unit to investigate fraud in connection with casualty claims. This special unit has one manager and nine employees. In cases where adjusters suspect fraud in connection with a claim, we deploy this special unit to conduct investigations. We deny payment to claimants in cases in which we have succeeded in accumulating sufficient evidence of fraud.

Property Claims

        Our property claims unit handles property claims arising in our private passenger and commercial automobile, homeowners and other insurance lines. Process automation has streamlined our property claims function. Many of our property claims are now handled by the agents through AVC using our Power Desk software application. As agents receive calls from claimants, Power Desk permits the agent to immediately send information related to the claim directly to us and to an independent appraiser selected by the agent to value the claim. Once we receive this information, an automated system redirects the claim to the appropriate internal adjuster responsible for investigating the claim to determine liability. Upon determination of liability, the system automatically begins the process of seeking a subrogation recovery from another insurer, if liable. We believe this process results in a shorter time period from when the claimant first contacts the agent to when the claimant receives a claim payment, while enabling our agents to build credibility with their clients by responding to claims in a timely and efficient manner. We benefit from decreased labor expenses from the need for fewer employees to handle the reduced property claims call volume.

        Another important factor in keeping our overall property claims costs low is collecting subrogation recoveries. We track the amounts we pay out in claims costs and identify cases in which we believe we can reclaim some or all of those costs through the use of our automated workload management tools.

Reserves

        Significant periods of time can elapse between the occurrence of an insured loss, the reporting of the loss to the insurer and the insurer's payment of that loss. To recognize liabilities for unpaid losses, insurers establish reserves as balance sheet liabilities representing estimates of amounts needed to pay reported and unreported losses and the expenses associated with investigating and paying the losses, or loss adjustment expenses. Every quarter, we review and establish our reserves. Regulations promulgated by the Commissioner require us to annually obtain a certification from either a qualified actuary or an approved loss reserve specialist who may be one of our employees that our loss and loss adjustment expenses reserves are reasonable.

        When a claim is reported, claims personnel establish a "case reserve" for the estimated amount of the ultimate payment. The amount of the reserve is primarily based upon an evaluation of the type of claim involved, the circumstances surrounding each claim and the policy provisions relating to the loss. The estimate reflects informed judgment of such personnel based on general insurance reserving practices and on the experience and knowledge of the claims person. During the loss adjustment period, these estimates are revised as deemed necessary by our claims department based on subsequent developments and periodic reviews of the cases.

        In accordance with industry practice, we also maintain reserves for estimated losses incurred but not yet reported. Incurred but not yet reported reserves are determined in accordance with commonly accepted actuarial reserving techniques on the basis of our historical information and experience. We make adjustments to incurred but not yet reported reserves quarterly to take into account changes in

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the volume of business written, claims frequency and severity, our mix of business, claims processing and other items that can be expected to affect our liability for losses and loss adjustment expenses over time.

        When reviewing reserves, we analyze historical data and estimate the impact of various loss development factors, such as our historical loss experience and that of the industry, legislative enactments, judicial decisions, legal developments in imposition of damages, and changes and trends in general economic conditions, including the effects of inflation. There is no precise method, however, for evaluating the impact of any specific factor on the adequacy of reserves, because the eventual development of reserves is affected by many factors. After taking into account all relevant factors, management believes that our provision for unpaid losses and loss adjustment expenses at December 31, 2009 is adequate to cover the ultimate net cost of losses and claims incurred as of that date.

        Management determines its loss and loss adjustment expense ("LAE") reserves estimates based upon the analysis of the Company's actuaries. Management has established a process for the Company's actuaries to follow in establishing reasonable reserves. The process consists of meeting with our claims department, establishing ultimate incurred losses by using development models accepted by the actuarial community, and reviewing the analysis with management. The Company's estimate for loss and LAE reserves, net of the effect of ceded reinsurance, ranges from a low of $332,854 to a high of $378,692 as of December 31, 2009. The Company's loss and LAE reserves, based on our actuaries' best estimate, were set at $374,832 as of December 31, 2009. The ultimate liability may be greater or less than reserves carried at the balance sheet date. Establishment of appropriate reserves is an inherently uncertain process, and there can be no certainty that currently established reserves will prove adequate in light of subsequent actual experience. To the extent that reserves are inadequate and are strengthened, the amount of such increase is treated as a charge to earnings in the period that the deficiency is recognized. To the extent that reserves are redundant and are released, the amount of the release is a credit to earnings in the period the redundancy is recognized. We do not discount any of our reserves.

        The following table presents development information on changes in the reserves for losses and LAE of our Insurance Subsidiaries for each year in the three year period ended December 31, 2009.

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