t was big. It was bright. It was controversial. And now it’s gone.

On Thursday, CBS Outdoor Inc. took down a billboard graphic — black text on a screaming yellow background — reading: “Consumer Watchdog says: ‘You Can’t Trust Mercury Insurance.’ ”

The towering Mid-Wilshire billboard was in a prime spot for attracting attention, at least from Mercury Insurance’s parent company, Mercury General Corp. It sat about half a mile east of corporate headquarters.

Consumer Watchdog’s billboard was taken down because Mercury, California’s third-largest auto insurer and ninth-largest homeowners insurer, complained to CBS Outdoor, said Harvey Rosenfield, founder of Consumer Watchdog.

Mercury confirmed that its lawyers “recently contacted CBS Outdoor about defamatory statements that had been posted on one of their billboards.”

“CBS apparently has considered our comments and, as a responsible organization, has removed the defamatory statements from their billboard. Consumer Watchdog’s claims about Mercury Insurance and its motivation are without merit,” Mercury said in a statement.

–

Read the full

Los Angeles Times

story.