Dean Jeffers, Former Chairman at Nationwide, Dies at 94

Dean W. Jeffers, who started selling automobile insurance part time in 1940 for Farm Bureau Mutual Automobile Insurance and retired as its general chairman and chief executive, died Oct. 27. He was 94. Farm Bureau Mutual eventually became Nationwide Group.

From 1972 to 1981, Jeffers steered Nationwide to consistent growth and market penetration that set the stage for it to become today "one of the largest multiline insurers and financial services organizations in the U.S.," according to BestLink, which provides online access to A.M. Best's Global Insurance & Banking Database.

"His leadership enabled Nationwide to grow into the great company it is today and his values set a course for this company's commitment to the communities we live in and the people we employ," Nationwide CEO Steve Rasmussen in a statement.

Jeffers was born Sept. 7, 1916, near Woodsfield, Ohio. He was deeply involved in efforts to revitalize Nationwide's home city, crowned by the construction of an $80 million, 40-story world headquarters that opened in 1978 under his watch.

Jeffers was involved in many insurance-based activities, the company said, such as serving as a director of the American Council of Life Insurance and chairing the ACLI's Committee on Economic Policy. He was a director and chairman of the Health Insurance Association of America and a member of the Property-Casualty Insurance Council.

The company said Jeffers left Farm Bureau Mutual to join the Marine Corps during World War II. Cpl. Jeffers was wounded during the Allied invasion of Iwo Jima in the winter of 1945, for which he was later awarded a Purple Heart, according to company spokeswoman Liz Christopher.

After the war, he returned to work at Farm Bureau Mutual as a claims adjuster at first. He was named Nationwide's president and general manager in 1969, and became chairman and CEO in 1972.

Jeffers is survived by his son, Phillip Dean Jeffers, his sister Nina, one niece, two nephews, five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

Nationwide Group has a current Best's Financial Strength Rating of A+ (Superior).

(Dennis Gorski, Best's Review managing editor)