MONTPELIER – Union Mutual Fire Insurance Company announced on Monday that it is celebrating its 150th anniversary in 2024. The Company, founded in 1874 by act of the Vermont Legislature, is now a regional property and casualty insurance carrier serving more than 100,000 individuals and small businesses throughout New England and parts of New York.
“We are proud to be celebrating our 150th anniversary,” said Lisa Keysar, President & CEO of the Company. “Throughout shifts in the industry, major advances in technology, challenges presented by global pandemics and climate-related events, the Company has been able to evolve and grow at a sustainable and steady pace. We owe our success to the hard work and dedication of our employees, the strong partnerships we have with our agency partners, as well as the loyalty of our policyholders.”
As a mutual company, Union Mutual does not answer to corporate stockholders and instead exists to provide value to its policyholders. The Company does not engage in direct-to-consumer sales, but rather partners with more than 250 independent insurance agents located throughout New England. These agents have an understanding of their own local communities and are able to accurately understand their clients’ needs for coverage.
Union Mutual was founded on the promise of ‘neighbors helping neighbors,’ and the Company recognizes the importance of extending that value as a responsible corporate citizen. At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company provided crucial funding for small local businesses impacted by “stay-at-home” mandates. After last summer’s flooding events in Vermont, the Company played a crucial part in local flood recovery efforts. Currently, a team made up of employees and agents are working to raise $150,000 to benefit Special Olympics Vermont by participating in the Lake Champlain Penguin Plunge event in February. Throughout the 2024 year, employees of the Company will engage in department service days with local and regional nonprofit organizations.
Union Mutual employees appreciate the corporate commitment to community as well as the company-wide emphasis on physical and mental wellbeing. Efforts to provide an excellent work environment for employees have been recognized with the designation Best Place to Work in Vermont for ten consecutive years and the Governor’s Gold Level Worksite Wellness Award for four consecutive years.
The Company will be using a special anniversary logo in 2024. The image of an antique torchbearer’s lamp, used to light the way of volunteer fire brigades, became the Company’s emblem in 1967. This logo has since become synonymous with service and reliability. In 2016, the logo was modernized with a lantern design as a symbol of the Company’s commitment to long-standing traditions while keeping up with the latest in industry technology.
In its sesquicentennial year, the Company will continue to focus on sophisticated analytics capabilities, supporting independent agents in writing new business, and providing excellent customer service in the underwriting, billing, and claims processes.
