2008-06-25 03:50:06 -

- Farmers New World Life Insurance Company has taken the number one spot in California in life insurance sales according to Paul Patsis, president of Farmers Life.

"We have achieved a longstanding goal of issuing more life policies than any other insurance company in California," Mr. Patsis said. "Part of Farmers Life's success was resisting an insurance industry decline.

In 2007, Farmers Life wrote:

-- 6.6 percent of all ordinary life policies issued-and-paid in California--that's 55,207 policies which is up from 5.5 percent in 2006 where we issued 46,844."

Patsis attributed the rapid growth to product innovations, processing modernizations and an agency force of over 4,239 Farmers agents dedicated to serving all of a family's insurance needs. "We have the products, we have the people, and we have the passion to meet our customers' Life insurance needs," he said.

Farmers presence in California includes four State Executive Directors.

"Farmers agents were challenged to take the new Simple Term policy and run with it and they rose to the challenge," noted Kirk Tweedy, Executive Director of the California Inland State Office, located in Citrus Heights, California.

"We are looking forward to serving our customers needs in the future," explained John Weaver, Executive Director of the California Northern State Office, located in Pleasanton, California. "Farmers Life introduced a Simple Term policy not to long ago, which streamlines the process of underwriting and allows policies to be approved in as little as a few minutes. Our customers truly appreciate this and it gives Farmers' agents much more time to serve their customers Life insurance needs."

"We have a substantial number of agents and customers in the Los Angeles County area," said Bill Matlock, Executive Director of the Los Angeles State Office located in Simi Valley, California. "Serving our customers well is what Farmers does, and that has contributed to the fantastic increase in our life insurance policy increase."

"I would like to congratulate all of the agents, district managers, and marketing managers who have worked so hard to take Farmers Life to the number one spot in California," said Charles Dabelgott, Executive Director of the California Southern State Office in Carlsbad, California. "Because of their hard work, we are on top and intend to stay there in the future."

"These results represent a team effort that should make every member of the Farmers family proud," Patsis said. "When Californians think of Farmers, they naturally think of Auto insurance because Farmers is the state's largest property and casualty company. However, Farmers insures more than property, it insures people. Farmers agents are number one when it comes to serving our life insurance customers."

About Farmers New World Life

Farmers New World Life Insurance Company has a proud history stretching back to 1910, when the company started as New World Life Insurance Company. Our company is associated with Farmers Insurance Group of Companies(R), which denotes one of the nation's largest insurance groups providing home, auto, business and life insurance, and financial services. For more information about Farmers(R), ask your Farmers agent or visit our website at www.farmers.com.

About Farmers Group, Inc.

Farmers Group, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Zurich Financial Services, an insurance-based financial services provider with a global network of subsidiaries and offices in North America and Europe as well as in Asia Pacific, Latin America and other markets. Farmers(R) is the nation's third-largest Personal Lines Property & Casualty insurance group. Property and casualty products are underwritten and issued by the Farmers Exchanges and their subsidiaries, which Farmers Group, Inc. manages but does not own. Headquartered in Los Angeles and doing business in 41 states, the Farmers insurers provide Homeowners, Auto, Business, Life insurance and financial services to more than 10 million households. For more information about Farmers, visit our Web site at www.farmers.com.

Farmers Insurance Group
Jerry Davies, 323-932-3600
jerry.davies@farmersinsurance.com