Dividends

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2019

The following table presents shareholder dividends paid:



	Year Ended December 31,
	2019		2018		2017
	(Amounts in thousands, except per share data)
Total paid	$	139,071	$	138,478	$	137,886
Per share paid	$	2.5125	$	2.5025	$	2.4925

The Insurance Companies are subject to the financial capacity guidelines established by their domiciliary states. The payment of dividends from statutory unassigned surplus of the Insurance Companies is restricted, subject to certain statutory limitations. As of December 31, 2019, the insurance subsidiaries of the Company are permitted to pay approximately $151 million in dividends in 2020 to Mercury General without the prior approval of the DOI of domiciliary states. The above statutory regulations may have the effect of indirectly limiting the ability of the Company to pay shareholder dividends. During 2019, 2018, and 2017, the Insurance Companies paid Mercury General ordinary dividends of $114 million, $135 million, and $109 million, respectively.

On February 7, 2020, the Board of Directors declared a $0.6300 quarterly dividend payable on March 31, 2020 to shareholders of record on March 17, 2020.