Auto Insurance
Liability, comprehensive, collision, uninsured motorist — written across Erie, Auto-Owners, and Progressive depending on your situation. Teen drivers and pre-1990 farm trucks both welcome.
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Independent Insurance · Galena, Illinois
Auto and home insurance from the people you'd run into at the grocery store.
Daniel Mercer, founder · Karen Mercer, customer service · Sarah Mercer, producer (licensed 2026).
25
Years on Main Street
1,400
Households served
12
Carriers represented
4.9 ★
47 Google reviews
An Independent Agent representing 12 carriers — not just one.
Big "I" MemberIllinois IIAA
Personal Lines
Three coverages. One conversation.
Home Insurance
HO-3 and HO-5 dwelling coverage, replacement-cost endorsements, water-backup, NFIP flood quoted separately. We write Galena's 1860s brick homes and 1990s ranches the same careful way.
Read more →Personal Umbrella
An extra $1M to $5M of liability that sits over your auto and home limits. Cheap protection for households with teen drivers, a boat, or a rental property.
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The Difference
Why work with an independent agent?
A captive agent works for one company. State Farm writes you on State Farm. Allstate writes you on Allstate. When their rates go up or their underwriting tightens, you find out at renewal — and the conversation about "what next?" is yours to figure out alone.
We are independent. We are appointed with twelve different carriers. Every year at renewal we shop your policy against the rest of the market on our side of the desk — not yours. That's the difference, and it's the entire reason Cornerstone exists.
It's also why Trusted Choice — the national association of independent agents — exists. We're a Trusted Choice member because the standards are real and we meet them. The badge on this page is not a marketing graphic. It's a credential.
"Where a direct writer is beholden to their company, I'm not. If Erie's not the right fit, I write you with Auto-Owners. That's the whole job." — Dan Mercer
Real Reviews
What our neighbors say.
"State Farm non-renewed our homeowners after twenty-six years. Dan had us re-written with Auto-Owners by Thursday afternoon — same coverage, sixty dollars less a month."
— Sarah K., East Dubuque
"Hit a deer on Highway 20 at 11 PM. Called Dan's cell. He had a tow truck on the way before I got off the phone. He's the agent everyone in Galena talks about."
— Mike R., Galena
"Karen reviewed our policy and found three things our last agent had never mentioned — service-line coverage, scheduled jewelry, and an umbrella. Eighty-five dollars more a year, three real holes filled."
— Linda P., Stockton
The Mercers
Three people. One storefront. Since 2001.
Dan opened Cornerstone in 2001 after fifteen years at State Farm. Karen joined six months later. Their daughter Sarah passed her Illinois P&C licensing exam this April — three Mercers, one storefront on the corner of Main and Bench.
We're not a call center. We're not an aggregator. We answer the phone — and after hours, it forwards to Dan's cell.
Read the full story →Get a quote — we'll call you back within one business hour.
Service Area
Galena, IL 61036
Serving Jo Daviess County
Galena, East Dubuque, Stockton, Elizabeth, Hanover, Apple River, Warren, Scales Mound — and the towns in between. If you can drive to us for a coffee, we can write you.
215 South Main StreetGalena, IL 61036
Street parking is free in front of the agency. Walk-ins welcome 8 AM – 5 PM Mon–Fri.