Business Strategy & Competitive Advantages

At Travelers, our simple and unwavering mission for creating shareholder value is to deliver superior returns on equity by leveraging our competitive advantages; generate earnings and capital substantially in excess of our growth needs; and thoughtfully rightsize capital and grow book value per share over time. Our Board of Directors regularly reviews this long-term financial strategy. Executing our long-term strategy requires that we fulfill our promise to take care of our customers, our communities and our employees. By executing our financial strategy, investing strategically in the future and delivering on the Travelers Promise, we will continue to deliver meaningful shareholder value over time.

Business Strategy

Our Long-Term Financial Strategy for Creating Shareholder Value

More than a decade ago, Travelers laid out a clear, simple and unwavering mission for creating shareholder value:

Business strategy flow chart. See details below.

A text box that reads, Create Shareholder Value. Obective: Mid-Teens Core ROE Over Time

Business_Strategy_Accordion

Our results in achieving the elements of this long-term financial strategy speak for themselves. Over the past decade:

  • Our return on equity has significantly outperformed the average return on equity for the industry.
  • We returned more than $28 billion of excess capital to our shareholders.
  • We grew dividends per share at an average annual rate of 8%.
  • We have grown book value per share and adjusted book value per share at a compound annual rate of 7%.

Importantly, over this 10-year period, our return on equity has been less volatile than that of others in the property and casualty industry. The level and consistency of our return on equity over time reflect the value of our competitive advantages and demonstrate the discipline with which we run our business.

Delivering Industry-Leading Return on Equity Over Time

The results we deliver are due to our deliberate and consistent approach to creating shareholder value. We have been clear for many years that one of our crucial responsibilities is to produce an appropriate return on equity for our shareholders. This has meant developing and executing financial and operational plans consistent with our goal of achieving superior returns, which we defined many years ago as a mid-teens core return on equity over time. We emphasize that the objective is measured over time because we recognize that the macroeconomic environment, loss cost trends, weather, and geopolitical and other factors impact our results from year to year, and that there are years – or longer periods – and environments in which a mid-teens return is not attainable. In that regard, we established the mid-teens goal at a time when the 10-year Treasury was yielding around 5%, and mid-teens was simply the quantification of what qualified as an industry-leading return in that environment. Our ability to achieve a mid-teens return over time going forward will depend on interest rates returning to more normal levels by historical standards. In any event, we will always seek to deliver industry-leading returns over time.

Our focus on core return on equity encompasses multiple performance objectives key to creating shareholder value. The measure is a function of both core income and shareholders’ equity (excluding unrealized gains and losses on investments). Accordingly, core return on equity reflects a number of separate areas of financial performance related to both our income statement and balance sheet, including the quality and profitability of our underwriting and investment decisions, the pricing of our policies, the effectiveness of our claims management and the efficacy of our capital and risk management.

Granular and Deliberate Execution

One critical component of our ability to deliver exceptional returns over time is our granular approach to underwriting. In our commercial businesses, that means execution, including the allocation of capital, on an account-by-account or class-by-class basis. In personal lines, that means a very high degree of account segmentation and the allocation of capital generally by product and geography. With that and our advanced data and analytics, we select the risks we write and price our products deliberately with our targeted return in mind. Underlying all of this is a culture that understands how to balance the art and science of decision-making based on data and analytics. This culture alone is a competitive advantage, and one that we believe is hard to replicate. Our underwriting expertise is a hallmark of our success, and evaluating risk and reward is at the heart of what we do.

We actively manage all levers of profitability available to us, including risk selection, mix of business, claim and expense initiatives, volume, reinsurance, terms and conditions, and price. We have a long track record of capitalizing on all of the available levers to deliver superior returns – and of applying these levers on a strategic and business-by-business basis. This is evident in the way we have executed quite differently in each of our business segments through changing economic and business cycles.

Disciplined Investment Approach

Much like our underwriting strategy, successfully balancing risk and reward is at the heart of our well-defined investment philosophy. Our investment portfolio is managed first and foremost to support our insurance operations and, accordingly, is positioned to meet our obligations to policyholders under a wide range of conditions. With this in mind, we emphasize risk-adjusted returns and credit quality rather than reaching for yield that is not consistent with the underlying risk. Our asset allocation is designed so that the predictable stream of investment income from our fixed income portfolio will provide a firm and reliable foundation for our overall results. In addition, our Investment Policy, approved by our Board of Directors, reflects a long-term approach to sustainable value creation and requires that Travelers consider environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in the investment process, to the extent relevant.

A Balanced Approach to Rightsizing Capital

Our capital management strategy has been an important driver of shareholder value creation over time. Our first objective for the capital we generate is to reinvest it in our business – organically and inorganically – to create shareholder value. For example, as we continue to grow our premium volumes, as we have for the past few years, we will retain more capital to support that growth. Also, we continue to invest in everything from talent to technology to further our ambitious innovation agenda and advance our strategic objectives. Having said that, we are disciplined stewards of our shareholders’ capital. To the extent that we continue to generate capital that we cannot reinvest consistent with our objective of generating industry-leading returns over time, we will manage it the same way we have for more than a decade – by returning it to our shareholders through dividends and share repurchases. By returning excess capital to our investors, we give them the ability to allocate their investment dollars as they see fit, including by investing in companies with different growth profiles or capital needs, thereby efficiently allocating capital across the economy. Over time, that efficient allocation of capital in the marketplace contributes to a stronger economy.

Acquisitions and Footprint

The lens through which we evaluate acquisition opportunities is that a transaction should contribute to our mission by improving our long-term return profile, reducing the volatility of our returns or creating shareholder value through some other important strategic benefit, such as a geographic or product position.

We have a great deal of experience in executing strategic transactions, and we view this as a core competency. The company that we are today has come together through a number of significant transactions over the past two decades.

Across all of our businesses, our strategic focus continues to include creating opportunities to write more business through retaining and growing our relationships with our high-quality in-force accounts and bringing our franchise value to new customers. As we have done successfully over the past few years, we will continue to seek to grow without compromising our return objectives or changing our risk profile, primarily by targeting customers, industries, products and geographies that we know well. In terms of geography, we continue to believe that geopolitical risk and economic instability around the world are underappreciated. Accordingly, we like our North America concentration. That is not to say that we do not continue to recognize value and evaluate opportunities outside of North America, but we have set an even higher bar for those opportunities today.

Investing in Our Future

Our competitive advantages set us apart; they are foundational to the success of our long-term financial strategy. At the same time, we understand clearly that the world is changing, and changing quickly. Broadly speaking, we see four significant forces of change impacting our industry:

  • Consumers’ expectations are changing and being shaped by their experiences in other industries.
  • Rapid progress in technology is enabling us to reimagine almost every aspect of our business.
  • The opportunities presented by data and analytics are becoming even more consequential.
  • Traditional distribution is consolidating and alternative models are developing.

We are focused intently on these forces of change. While our long-term financial strategy is not changing, the competitive advantages that have fueled our success over the last decade will not necessarily be the same as those we will need to continue to lead for the next decade. That is the focus of our innovation agenda: making sure that our competitive advantages are as relevant and differentiating tomorrow as they are today.

Ultimately, the vision for our innovation agenda is to be:

the undeniable choice for the customer and an indispensable partner for our agents and brokers.

This vision drives our three innovation priorities:

  • Extending our advantage in risk expertise.
  • Providing great experiences for our customers, agents and brokers and employees.
  • Optimizing our productivity and efficiency.

A key theme running through our investments is that they are designed in large part to enable us to optimize the top line at attractive returns. We have been investing in these priorities for several years while delivering industry-leading returns and an improving expense ratio.

We are undertaking this work from a position of strength. We have the resources and expertise to be successful. Moreover, our business is complex, and the value of deep domain expertise in understanding risk and the products and services our customers need to manage that risk cannot be underestimated as the starting point for innovation. We believe the winners in our industry will be those who can innovate successfully on top of a foundation of excellence.

 * * *

Underlying our financial strategy and our innovation agenda is the Travelers Promise – our promise to be there for our customers, communities and employees. Only by faithfully keeping the Travelers Promise will we earn the support of key stakeholders essential to our success. And only by successfully delivering on our financial strategy and executing our innovation agenda will we earn the resources we need to keep the Travelers Promise. That’s why, at Travelers, our business strategy and performance are inextricably linked with the Travelers Promise.

Our Competitive Advantages

Our Long-Term Financial Strategy for Creating Shareholder Value. Travelers creates shareholder value over time through meaningful and sustainable competitive advantages; generation of top tier earnings and capital substantially in excess of growth needs; and a balanced approach to rightsizing capital and growing book value per share over time.

Our Competitive Advantages Are Meaningful & Sustainable

Our competitive advantages serve as the foundation of our financial success and help us fulfill our promise to protect our customers.

Underlying our competitive advantages are four key enablers that help set us apart – our talent and expertise, industry-leading data and analytics, technology and financial strength.

Click on each of the competitive advantages in the graphic to learn more.

Risk Selection, Underwriting & Pricing Segmentation

Data and analytics influence the decisions we make and drive innovation throughout the organization – from the development and delivery of our products and services to risk selection, underwriting and pricing. But data and analytics are only as good as the people interpreting them – which is why we match our strength in data and analytics with a deep industry expertise. We regularly introduce new tools and enhance our training and recruitment practices with the goal of ensuring that our expertise in data and analytics stays at the cutting edge. In addition, we are increasingly transforming our data into actionable insights to improve our decision-making.

  • Approximately 1,500 employees working in analytics, including actuaries, data scientists and statisticians, data engineers, and data and information analysts.
  • An Underwriting function of 4,000+ people, with an average tenure at Travelers of more than 12 years, supported by 4,000+ operations specialists.
  • A broad appetite with a deep underwriting specialization in more than 40 industries.

Product Breadth & Specialization

We engage broadly across nine major lines of insurance in three segments – Business Insurance, Bond & Specialty Insurance and Personal Insurance. Our portfolio is balanced across these lines of business and further diversified by geography and customer type and size.

  • Leading U.S. commercial insurance writer in 2021, with a top-five position in five major product lines, including a number one position in workers compensation and commercial multi-peril.1
  • A top-10 writer of U.S. personal automobile and homeowners insurance, and a leading personal insurance writer with independent agents.2
  • Approximately 67% of domestic premiums from liability lines (e.g., workers compensation, management liability, general liability, auto insurance) in 2021.
  • Approximately 33% of domestic premiums from property lines (e.g., homeowners, commercial property) in 2021.
1 2021 U.S. Statutory DWP. Five major product lines: Commercial Multi-Peril (Commercial Multiple Peril (Liability), Commercial Multiple Peril (Non-Liability), Farmowners Multiple Peril); Commercial Auto (Commercial Auto No-Fault (Personal Injury Protection), Commercial Auto Physical Damage, Other Commercial Auto Liability); General Liability (Other Liability Occurrence, Product Liability); Workers Compensation; and Surety. Copyright © 2022, S&P Global Market Intelligence. Used with permission.
2 2020 U.S. Statutory DWP. 2021 data not available at time of publication. ©A.M. Best Company, Inc. Used with permission.

Distribution Relationships

Domestically, we are the carrier of choice among independent agencies and brokers. Our agent and broker partners have a deep understanding of customer needs, and they provide us with insights that are a valuable part of our underwriting and risk selection process.

  • Leading commercial lines insurer in the UBS Semi-Annual Insurance Agent Survey when agents were asked to identify their commercial lines carriers.1
  • Relationships with approximately 13,500 independent agencies and brokers.
1 UBS Semi-Annual Insurance Agent Survey, September 2021.

Claim Services

Our dedicated Claim professionals are trained to deliver high-quality service and handle claims efficiently and with compassion. We strive to:

  • Pay what we owe.
  • Deliver exceptional customer experiences.
  • Use technology, data, analytics and artificial intelligence to work as efficiently and effectively as possible.

Our customers, claimants and business partners benefit from our innovative capabilities, including:

  • Our unique and flexible catastrophe response capability, made possible by extensive employee cross-training and advanced workforce management programs. In 2021, we closed more than 92% of our claims arising out of catastrophe events within 30 days.
  • Our use of advanced technology in damage inspections, including smartphone-based virtual inspection tools, aerial imagery and drones, which allow our Claim professionals to work more safely and effectively.
    • For example, in 2021, we handled 35% more auto appraisals and 70% more property water claims virtually, as compared to pre-pandemic levels.
    • Travelers is also one of the largest commercial users of drones, with more than 84,000 flights conducted in 48 states since the program’s inception.
  • Approximately 35 predictive claim models leveraging data and minimizing inconvenience to customers.
  • Subrogation recoveries that significantly outperform industry benchmarks.1
  • Travelers Claim University, our state-of-the-art training and professional development facility, dedicated to providing technical training and skills-based learning to Claim employees.
  • The deliberate cultivation of ethical, customer-centric Claim culture through training, internal communications, management coaching and compliance activities.
  • A highly selective hiring process for Claim staff designed to attract, retain and develop employees with empathy, integrity and professional expertise.
  • Recognition for Claim professionals who deliver exceptional customer experiences that help build the Travelers brand and business.
1 National Association of Subrogation Professionals (NASP) industry data.

Risk Mitigation & Improvement

For over 110 years, our loss prevention professionals have assisted agents, brokers and customers across the country and around the world. We deliver expertise in safety and risk mitigation through one of the largest Risk Control departments in the industry. We complete approximately 120,000 consultations annually, including 60,000 jurisdictional boiler and pressure vessel inspection visits, which contribute to a unique risk assessment database we have assembled over the past decade. We leverage this resource not just for risk mitigation but also for risk selection and pricing.

  • Travelers Risk Control consultants are backed by highly qualified specialists in areas such as fire protection, product liability, transportation and much more.
  • Specialized expertise in public entity exposures, emerging and advanced technology, cybersecurity and resilience, and property valuation for both building and business/personal property.
  • Leading provider of risk control services with industry specialization (e.g., construction and manufacturing).
  • Enhanced ergonomic assessments for our customers, leveraging artificial intelligence technology.
  • Proprietary risk assessment database with 200M+ data points that were compiled over more than a decade.
  • Sophisticated Industrial Hygiene and Forensics Laboratories.
  • Fully functional sprinkler lab for training customers on effective inspection, maintenance and testing of sprinkler systems.
  • In 2021, we continued to leverage virtual capabilities to enable the delivery of our Risk Control services and a seamless customer engagement experience during the pandemic.

Our Competitive Advantages

Our Competitive Advantages Are Meaningful & Sustainable

Our competitive advantages serve as the foundation of our financial success and help us fulfill our promise to protect our customers.

Underlying our competitive advantages are four key enablers that help set us apart – our talent and expertise, industry-leading data and analytics, technology and financial strength.

Click on each of the competitive advantages in the graphic to learn more.

Our Competitive Advantages Are Meaningful & Sustainable

Our competitive advantages serve as the foundation of our financial success and help us fulfill our promise to protect our customers.

Underlying our competitive advantages are four key enablers that help set us apart – our talent and expertise, industry-leading data and analytics, technology and financial strength.

Click on each of the competitive advantages in the graphic to learn more.

Risk Selection, Underwriting & Pricing Segmentation

Data and analytics influence the decisions we make and drive innovation throughout the organization – from the development and delivery of our products and services to risk selection, underwriting and pricing. But data and analytics are only as good as the people interpreting them – which is why we match our strength in data and analytics with a deep industry expertise. We regularly introduce new tools and enhance our training and recruitment practices with the goal of ensuring that our expertise in data and analytics stays at the cutting edge. In addition, we are increasingly transforming our data into actionable insights to improve our decision-making.

  • Approximately 1,500 employees working in analytics, including actuaries, data scientists and statisticians, data engineers, and data and information analysts.
  • An Underwriting function of 4,000+ people, with an average tenure at Travelers of more than 12 years, supported by 4,000+ operations specialists.
  • A broad appetite with a deep underwriting specialization in more than 40 industries.

Product Breadth & Specialization

We engage broadly across nine major lines of insurance in three segments – Business Insurance, Bond & Specialty Insurance and Personal Insurance. Our portfolio is balanced across these lines of business and further diversified by geography and customer type and size.

  • Leading U.S. commercial insurance writer in 2021, with a top-five position in five major product lines, including a number one position in workers compensation and commercial multi-peril.1
  • A top-10 writer of U.S. personal automobile and homeowners insurance, and a leading personal insurance writer with independent agents.2
  • Approximately 67% of domestic premiums from liability lines (e.g., workers compensation, management liability, general liability, auto insurance) in 2021.
  • Approximately 33% of domestic premiums from property lines (e.g., homeowners, commercial property) in 2021.
1 2021 U.S. Statutory DWP. Five major product lines: Commercial Multi-Peril (Commercial Multiple Peril (Liability), Commercial Multiple Peril (Non-Liability), Farmowners Multiple Peril); Commercial Auto (Commercial Auto No-Fault (Personal Injury Protection), Commercial Auto Physical Damage, Other Commercial Auto Liability); General Liability (Other Liability Occurrence, Product Liability); Workers Compensation; and Surety. Copyright © 2022, S&P Global Market Intelligence. Used with permission.
2 2020 U.S. Statutory DWP. 2021 data not available at time of publication. ©A.M. Best Company, Inc. Used with permission.

Distribution Relationships

Domestically, we are the carrier of choice among independent agencies and brokers. Our agent and broker partners have a deep understanding of customer needs, and they provide us with insights that are a valuable part of our underwriting and risk selection process.

  • Leading commercial lines insurer in the UBS Semi-Annual Insurance Agent Survey when agents were asked to identify their commercial lines carriers.1
  • Relationships with approximately 13,500 independent agencies and brokers.
1 UBS Semi-Annual Insurance Agent Survey, September 2021.

Claim Services

Our dedicated Claim professionals are trained to deliver high-quality service and handle claims efficiently and with compassion. We strive to:

  • Pay what we owe.
  • Deliver exceptional customer experiences.
  • Use technology, data, analytics and artificial intelligence to work as efficiently and effectively as possible.

Our customers, claimants and business partners benefit from our innovative capabilities, including:

  • Our unique and flexible catastrophe response capability, made possible by extensive employee cross-training and advanced workforce management programs. In 2021, we closed more than 92% of our claims arising out of catastrophe events within 30 days.
  • Our use of advanced technology in damage inspections, including smartphone-based virtual inspection tools, aerial imagery and drones, which allow our Claim professionals to work more safely and effectively.
    • For example, in 2021, we handled 35% more auto appraisals and 70% more property water claims virtually, as compared to pre-pandemic levels.
    • Travelers is also one of the largest commercial users of drones, with more than 84,000 flights conducted in 48 states since the program’s inception.
  • Approximately 35 predictive claim models leveraging data and minimizing inconvenience to customers.
  • Subrogation recoveries that significantly outperform industry benchmarks.1
  • Travelers Claim University, our state-of-the-art training and professional development facility, dedicated to providing technical training and skills-based learning to Claim employees.
  • The deliberate cultivation of ethical, customer-centric Claim culture through training, internal communications, management coaching and compliance activities.
  • A highly selective hiring process for Claim staff designed to attract, retain and develop employees with empathy, integrity and professional expertise.
  • Recognition for Claim professionals who deliver exceptional customer experiences that help build the Travelers brand and business.
1 National Association of Subrogation Professionals (NASP) industry data.

Risk Mitigation & Improvement

For over 110 years, our loss prevention professionals have assisted agents, brokers and customers across the country and around the world. We deliver expertise in safety and risk mitigation through one of the largest Risk Control departments in the industry. We complete approximately 120,000 consultations annually, including 60,000 jurisdictional boiler and pressure vessel inspection visits, which contribute to a unique risk assessment database we have assembled over the past decade. We leverage this resource not just for risk mitigation but also for risk selection and pricing.

  • Travelers Risk Control consultants are backed by highly qualified specialists in areas such as fire protection, product liability, transportation and much more.
  • Specialized expertise in public entity exposures, emerging and advanced technology, cybersecurity and resilience, and property valuation for both building and business/personal property.
  • Leading provider of risk control services with industry specialization (e.g., construction and manufacturing).
  • Enhanced ergonomic assessments for our customers, leveraging artificial intelligence technology.
  • Proprietary risk assessment database with 200M+ data points that were compiled over more than a decade.
  • Sophisticated Industrial Hygiene and Forensics Laboratories.
  • Fully functional sprinkler lab for training customers on effective inspection, maintenance and testing of sprinkler systems.
  • In 2021, we continued to leverage virtual capabilities to enable the delivery of our Risk Control services and a seamless customer engagement experience during the pandemic.

Our Drivers of Sustained Value

  • icon-business-strategy
    Business Strategy & Competitive Advantages
  • icon-risk-management
    Capital &
    Risk Management
  • icon-climate-strategy
    Climate
    Strategy
  • icon-community
    Community
  • icon-customer-experience
    Customer
    Experience
  • icon-data-privacy-and-cybersecurity
    Data Privacy &
    Cybersecurity
  • icon-disaster-preparedness-and-response
    Disaster Preparedness
    & Response
  • icon-diversity-and-inclusion
    Diversity &
    Inclusion
  • icon-eco-efficient-operations
    Eco-Efficient
    Operations
  • icon-ethics-and-values
    Ethics &
    Values
  • icon-governance
    Governance Practices
  • icon-human-capital-management
    Human Capital
    Management
  • icon-innovation
    Innovation
  • icon-investment-management
    Investment
    Management
  • icon-public-policy
    Public Policy
  • icon-safety-and-health
    Safety &
    Health
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This site contains information about Travelers. Travelers disclaims any duty or obligation to update such information. Any “forward-looking statement” is made only as of the date such information was originally prepared by Travelers and is intended to fall within the safe harbor for forward-looking information provided in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, may be forward-looking statements. Words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “likely,” “anticipates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “projects,” “believes,” “estimates” and other similar expressions are used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements include, among other things, statements about our future results of operations and financial condition; our share repurchases and dividends; our strategy and competitive advantages; our strategic operational initiatives to improve profitability and competitiveness; our new product offerings; our innovation agenda; our investment portfolio; our risk management, including climate-related risks and opportunities; our catastrophe modeling, including statements about probabilities or likelihood of exceedance; our scenario analyses; our cybersecurity, business resiliency and data privacy;  our underwriting strategy; and our carbon footprint. Results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements. Factors that can cause results to differ materially include those described under “Forward Looking Statements” in the Travelers most recent Form 10-K and Form 10-Qs filed with the SEC and available on our website, and with respect to our scenario analyses, those factors described under "Climate Scenario Analysis With Respect to the Hurricane Peril" and "Climate Scenario Analysis With Respect to Our Investment Portfolio" in Travelers TCFD Report included on this site.
 
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