Safeco is planning a number of program initiatives that will help build its business and is aiming at improving its relationship with independent agents with better commission payments to agents, the executives said.

Ms. Reynolds noted that in the past 11 months since she took the reins as the chief executive, the company has improved its agility to deal with numerous business issues and future growth. It is also listening more closely to its agency force, she said.

“To be a great company, you have to execute on a lot of fronts and we believe that with the work we have done this year…waking up to the reality we have see around us, that we do have the ability to execute on a number of fronts–to deliver value to [shareholders] that is very sustainable, and very predictable, and is also very transparent,” she said.

In terms of a specific market, Mr. Hughes said there might be some price reduction in the personal lines auto side in view of the competition that is going on.

In the homeowners market, there is competition for non-coastal risk, while coastal risks suffer from increased pricing and lack of capacity, said Mr. Hughes.

Commercial property is very much affected by geographic location, but it remains a “rational market that is flat with some slight reductions,” Mr. Hughes said.

Mr. Kari, discussing the reinsurance market, said prices were about 50 percent higher than last year, and capacity remains limited. The company is going through its Jan. 1 renewal cycle now. Safeco had one Oct. 1 business line treaty that saw a 15 percent reduction, he reported.

The major interest is in catastrophe treaties, he noted, and Safeco is “encouraged” by what it is hearing. The company is getting better control over its risks and, in the next week or, so will begin getting prices that it can make decisions on.

Mr. Kari said there are an increasing number of alternative markets available for its catastrophe risks, which gives the carrier even more encouragement in its placements. However, the eventual costs of those placements would not be known until the end of the year, when the company will give an update, he said.