Fluetsch and Busby Insurance

What Fluetsch and Busby Insurance does

Fluetsch and Busby Insurance is a fourth-generation, family-owned independent insurance agency headquartered at 725 W. 18th Street in Merced, California, operating continuously since 1912. The agency is currently led by President Doug Fluetsch and co-owner Jeannie Bliss, supported by a staff of approximately 20 employees including commercial lines agents, personal lines agents, account managers, a claim coordinator, an office manager, bilingual agents, and assistants. It is licensed under California License Number 0358327.

The agency distributes four core insurance lines — homeowners, auto, commercial, and agricultural (farm & crop) — serving individual consumers, local SMBs, and farming operations across the Merced County and Central Valley region. Its distribution combines direct in-person and phone sales from its single Merced office with a self-service online quote tool integrated through consumerratequotes.com (introduced in 2020) for personal and auto lines; commercial and agricultural coverage is sold via direct consultation. The agency maintains a strategic relationship with the California and Merced County Farm Bureaus, including co-organized farm safety events and a Nationwide partnership for agricultural products, and was the first insurance agency to receive the California Farm Bureau Select Partner Award in 2024.

Revenue is generated through standard insurance carrier commissions on placed policies across personal, commercial, and agricultural lines; pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed, with annual billing cadence. The firm employs a relationship-led, community-anchored go-to-market model with no external institutional investment, parent company, or subsidiary structure. Technology footprint is conventional for an independent agency — website, blog, and third-party quoting integration — with no proprietary platforms, APIs, or disclosed AI/ML capabilities.

Name

Fluetsch and Busby Insurance

Legal name

Fluetsch & Busby Insurance

Website

https://fandb1912.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1912

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Fluetsch and Busby Insurance is a fourth-generation, family-owned independent insurance agency based in Merced, California, providing homeowners, auto, commercial, and agricultural coverage to individuals and businesses in the Central Valley since 1912.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Property & Casualty Insurance Agency

NAICS

Insurance Agencies and Brokerages (52421)

SIC

Insurance Agents, Brokers & Service (6411)

akta.pro primary industry

Commercial Lines Insurance Brokerage (FSAEADAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Retail (Personal Lines) Insurance Brokerage (FSAEADAA), Mid-Market Commercial Package (Package Policies) (FSAJAFAB)

Keywords

• Homeowners insurance
• Auto insurance agency
• Commercial insurance coverage
• Farm and crop insurance
• Independent insurance agency

Headquarters

HQ city

Merced

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Insurance Premiums: Revenue generated through commissions from insurance carriers for placing policy coverage for homeowners, auto, commercial, and agricultural clients. Insurance represents recurring premium payments from clients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Fluetsch and Busby Insurance is an independent insurance agency that places and services personal, commercial, and agricultural insurance policies on behalf of third-party carriers for clients in Merced and California's Central Valley. Core product lines are Homeowners, Auto, Commercial (including Workers Compensation), and Farm & Crop/Agriculture insurance, supported by licensed commercial and personal lines agents and an online quote tool for personal coverage.

Product overview

Fluetsch and Busby Insurance offers a portfolio of core insurance products focused on property and asset protection. The company provides four primary insurance lines: Homeowners, Auto, Commercial, and Agriculture insurance, all positioned as standalone core products for personal, business, and farm customers in the Central Valley region. A supplementary digital tool (Personal Items Quote Tool) was introduced to enable online quote generation. The product architecture is relatively simple, consisting of traditional insurance products supported by a modern digital quoting interface for customer self-service.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Homeowners Insurance Residential property insurance coverage placed with third-party carriers for homeowners in Merced and surrounding California areas, protecting homes and personal belongings against property and liability risks.
• Auto Insurance Personal automobile insurance coverage placed with third-party carriers for individual vehicle owners, including liability, collision, and related protections; quotes available online via consumerratequotes.com.
• Commercial Insurance Business insurance coverage placed with third-party carriers for local Merced and Central Valley businesses, including commercial property, general liability, and Workers Compensation; delivered through dedicated Commercial Lines Agents.
• Agriculture Insurance Specialized farm and crop insurance coverage placed with third-party carriers for Central Valley farmers, protecting agricultural assets, farm equipment, and crop operations; delivered through a dedicated Farm & Crop specialist.

Quantifiable outcome

• First insurance agency to win Select Partner Award from California Farm Bureau
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• California Farm BureaucoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFluetsch & Busby Insurance has a strategic partnership with the California Farm Bureau, being the first insurance agency to receive their Select Partner Award. This recognition highlights the company's excellence in serving the agricultural community and commitment to farming operations in the Central Valley.
• Merced County Farm BureaucoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing partnership with Merced County Farm Bureau including joint community events such as farm safety and equipment training days. The company collaborates with the bureau to support local farmers and agricultural community initiatives.
• NationwideminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNationwide is mentioned as a partner in farm safety training events organized with Fluetsch & Busby and Merced County Farm Bureau, suggesting a working relationship for agricultural insurance products.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Farmers Insurance: Major California-headquartered national P&C carrier with a captive agent model heavily represented in Central Valley markets. Directly competes with F&B for personal and commercial lines, and overlaps in the ag-adjacent small business segment.
• Brown & Brown Insurance: Large national insurance brokerage with significant California retail operations, including personal, commercial, and ag lines. A potential acquirer and aggregator of independent agencies like F&B rather than a direct local competitor.
• Allstate: Major national personal lines carrier with exclusive agents throughout California. Competes directly with F&B for auto and homeowners customers in Merced, though through a captive rather than independent brokerage model.
• Nationwide: Major national insurance carrier that is both a direct competitor (personal lines agents in California) and an existing carrier partner for F&B on farm safety training events. Represents the supply-side counterpart F&B places business with.
• State Farm: Largest U.S. personal lines insurer with an exclusive agent model serving personal auto and homeowners in every California market including Merced. Competes for the same personal lines customers as F&B, but through a captive (rather than independent) agency model.
• Hub International: Large North American insurance brokerage aggregator with California retail operations. Functions as both a competitor for mid-market commercial accounts and a likely acquirer of established independent agencies such as F&B.

Direct peers

• Leavitt Group: Network of independent insurance agencies across the Western U.S., including California, offering personal, commercial, and ag coverage through locally-owned offices. Comparable as a multi-state aggregator of regional family-run agencies serving similar customers.
• Heffernan Insurance Brokers: Independent California-based insurance brokerage founded in 1988 with offices across Northern California and the Bay Area, serving commercial and personal clients. Comparable as a California-focused independent brokerage with similar product breadth.
• George Petersen Insurance Agency: Family-founded independent insurance brokerage established in 1935 in Sacramento, CA, serving personal, commercial, and ag clients across Northern California. Highly comparable to F&B in scale, ownership model, multi-line focus, and regional California positioning.
• The J. Morey Company: Family-owned independent insurance agency founded in 1906, headquartered in Anaheim, CA, providing personal, commercial, and specialty lines. Closely matches F&B in founding era, family ownership, California footprint, and multi-line brokerage model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/fandb1912

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Fluetsch and Busby Insurance