The Chronicle reports that insurance industry magazines linked Geico's decision to close sales offices in California with its failure to increase insurance prices in compliance with Sacramento regulations and other market forces. The Sacramento Bee reported Monday that Geico had closed each of its 38 offices in the state, resulting in more than 100 layoffs. The insurer's website didn't show locations or agents available until Tuesday morning. This photo illustration shows the Government Employees Insurance Company (GEICO) logo on a smartphone.
GEICO abruptly closed all of its physical sales offices in California last week and told its customers that their insurance policies in the Golden State will henceforth be managed exclusively digitally through the insurance giant's website or through its mobile application. Geico, which until recently had branches in the Los Angeles area, including a branch that opened in Burbank last year, now has zero agents available in California. GEICO has reportedly closed its 38 agent offices in California, laid off hundreds of employees and will no longer sell insurance through telephone agents in the state. Headquartered in Maryland and founded in 1936, Geico is one of the largest auto and homeowners insurance companies in the world country.
In a statement to the Sacramento Bee, a company spokesperson declined to elaborate on the changes, but clarified that GEICO would not leave the Golden State. As of Tuesday afternoon, the GEICO careers page included two vacancies at Poway, for a customer service representative and a claims service specialist. GEICO closed its 38 sales offices in California and laid off “hundreds of employees,” according to media reports, but the closures will not affect claims management, a company spokesperson told Repairer Driven News. However, one told ABC10 that the Insurance Department denied GEICO's rate increases for years and that the company had to find ways to reduce costs.
Geico insurance policyholders can still access their accounts online or on the company's mobile app. According to the California Department of Insurance, GEICO closed all of its physical stores, but continues to sell insurance policies online and through its app. Californians can still get GEICO policies in the state, but only through a computer or mobile device, posing a challenge for those who are not tech-savvy. Two people with family members employed by GEICO told ABC10 that their loved ones were suddenly laid off last week and were only given a week's notice.
in advance. In Illinois, for example, GEICO carried out two 6% rate increases in five months and, as a result, its market share in the state fell, Crain's Chicago Business reported.
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