Mercury vs. Sentry Insurance

Which insurance carrier is right for you? Compare price, ratings, and quotes from Mercury and Sentry.

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Mercury vs. Sentry: What You Need to Know

George Joseph founded Mercury General Corporation in Los Angeles with a promise to provide more affordable rates than other carriers and the best customer service in the industry. The first policy was sold in 1962 when the company had only six employees and 90 agents. Two years later Mercury Insurance opened an office in Orange County, CA. In 1966 they opened their first office in the San Fernando Valley and a year later earned an A+ rating from A.M. Best. They continued expanding in southern California with an office opening in San Diego. In 1968 Mercury established a holding company, then acquired shares of Mercury Casualty Company and made it a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mercury General Corp. They then moved into their newly opened San Jose office. In 1970, Mercury wrote $1 million in premiums in one month and grew to employ 467 agents. In 1972 they sold their first homeowners policy. In 1973 Mercury formed a subsidiary for underwriting preferred risk, thereby increasing business using a 34-page manual written by the company’s founder. In 1974, Mercury opened its first Sacramento office and by 1977, Mercury Insurance becomes the largest insurance subsidiary, producing over $1 billion in premiums by 2011. In 1978, Mercury established a Special Investigations Unit (SIU) to fight insurance fraud.

Sentry insurance specializes in business insurance and its subsidiary, Dairyland, sells high-risk car insurance, which includes SR-22 and FR-44filings.

Below is a list of average rates, rankings, products, and discounts for the two companies. For full company overviews, you can visit Mercury Overview and Sentry Overview.

Mercury vs. Sentry: How much are the Average Rates?

Below is a list of the average rates that drivers typically pay with Mercury and Sentry. On average, Mercury charges approximately $151.63 per month while Sentry comes in at around $257.25 per month. For Mercury, the cheapest state average is Illinois at $106.75 per month and the most expensive is New Jersey at $229.00 per month. For Sentry, the cheapest state average is Washington at $264.20 per month and the most expensive is Pennsylvania at $283.41 per month.

Mercury

Average Rate

$151.63
Sentry

Average Rate

$257.25
National

Average Rate

$133.56
State Mercury Sentry
Arizona $182.25 -
California $141.08 -
Florida $211.37 -
Georgia $161.49 -
Illinois $106.75 -
Nevada $228.01 -
New Jersey $229.00 -
Pennsylvania- $283.41
Texas $158.74 -
Washington- $264.20

Mercury vs. Sentry: Rates by Number of Vehicle

Home

Drivers will typically get a discount if they insure multiple vehicles. Here is a list of average rates that Mercury and Sentry typically charge for drivers who have more than 1 vehicle.

Number of Vehicles Mercury Sentry
1 Vehicle $140.73 $254.86
2 Vehicles $224.05 $

Mercury vs. Sentry: Rates by Homeownership

Home

Drivers who own their home rather than rent can sometimes get a small discount. We found that on average Mercury charges $165.12 per month and Sentry charges $281.82 per month for customers who own their home.

Own/Rent Mercury Sentry
Own $165.12 $281.82
Rent $149.15 $252.07

What is Mercury and Sentry Insurance Rating?

Which car insurance company is better? We've made it easy to compare companies side by side. See how Mercury and Sentry ranked among the industry ratings.

ComparisonMercurySentry
Year Founded19621904
Market Share1.13%
A.M. Best RatingA+
BBB RatingA+A+
Financial StrengthExcellentExcellent
JD Power RankingAverage
Moody’s RatingBaa2
S&P RatingA

Mercury or Sentry: Insurance Products Offered

What coverage is available through Mercury and Sentry? Both insurance companies offer Auto, Commercial, and Home insurance. Additional products from Mercury insurance also includes Condo, Renters, and Umbrella insurance. Considering these two top insurance providers? Check out the list below. To view a full list of products that are available, visit Mercury and Sentry Insurance page.

InsuranceMercurySentry
Auto Insurance
Commercial Insurance
Condo Insurance
Home Insurance
Life Insurance
Renters Insurance
SR22/FR44
Umbrella Insurance

Mercury or Sentry: Ways To Save

Sentry offers a wide range of discounts to its policyholders, including Homeowners, Multi-vehicle, and Payment Frequencys discounts. In contrast, Mercury also offers a few discounts that Sentry doesn’t, including Pay-in-Full, Occupational, and Multi-policy discounts. Start taking advantage of discounts offered by insurance providers like Sentry and Mercury insurance and save yourself some money. You can review the full list of discounts that these two companies offer below.

MercurySentry
Anti-theft Feature DiscountDriving Course Discounts
Auto Pay DiscountHomeowners Discount
E-signature DiscountMulti-vehicle Discount
Good Driver DiscountPayment Frequency Discounts
Good Student DiscountTransfer Discount
Multi-car DiscountVehicle Safety Feature Discounts
Multi-policy Discount
Occupational Discount
Pay-in-Full Discount

Pros & Cons of Mercury & Sentry

Pros

Mercury
  • Offers low rates and excellent coverage for homeowners, condo, renters, umbrella, auto, mechanical breakdown, business auto and business insurance in 13 states.
Sentry
  • Sentry offers a comprehensive suite of business insurance products.
  • Sentry offers high-risk insurance through Dairyland Insurance.

Cons

Mercury
  • Mercury Insurance is only available in 13 states.
  • Not all discounts are available in all 13 states.
Sentry
  • Sentry does not offer basic car insurance to the average driver, only high-risk drivers through Dairyland and auto insurance for business fleets and cars.

Mercury or Sentry Mobile Apps Options

The Mercury Mobile app is available for android. This insurance tool is where you can manage payments, view auto policy information, download ID cards and more.

The Sentry Mobile parking app is available for iOS and Android. The app interacts with your parking meter in real-time and lets you buy time on an MPS parking meter. You can also access a map of nearby meters and parking space availability.

Mercury Mobile App
iOS N/ANot Available
Android     2.7200 user reviews
Sentry Mobile App
iOS     2.75 user reviews
Android     3.18 user reviews

Mercury & Sentry Contact Info

Mercury Contact Info
Address4484 Wilshire Boulevard Los Angeles, California
Phone1 (800) 503-3724
Websitehttps://www.mecuryinsurance.com
Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/MercuryInsurance
Twitterhttps://twitter.com/mercuryins
Youtubehttps://www.youtube.com/mercury
Linkedinhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/mercury-insurance
Sentry Contact Info
Address1800 North Point Drive, Stevens Point, WI 54481
Phone1 (800) 473-6879
Websitehttps://www.sentry.com/
Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/SentryInsurance/
Twitterhttps://twitter.com/SentryInsurance
Youtubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8e_0-7XichFIuDa-JI54gQ
Linkedinhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/sentry/

Methodology
The statistics listed on this page are from our own in house reporting. We track and record quotes that carriers have provided based on various criteria. The rates and averages shown on this page should only be used as an estimate.

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