Union Mutual celebrates 150th anniversary

MONTPELIER — Union Mutual Fire Insurance Co. celebrates its 150th anniversary this year. The company, the second-oldest insurance company in Vermont, was started in 1874 with a charter from the Legislature.

"We are proud to be celebrating our 150th anniversary," said Lisa Keysar, president and 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."

Keysar, who grew up in Barre, is the company's 15th president and the first woman to head the company. She has worked for Union Mutual for almost 30 years and is the only second-generation president of the company. Her father, Jack McLaughlin, was president and CEO from 1993 to 2001.

The company's first president was E.B. Campbell, and its first policy was issued on July 28, 1875, to Marcus D. Gilman, who also happened to be Union Mutual's vice president, on his home on Baldwin Street in Montpelier, next door to the state Capitol building.

"Union Mutual was founded on the promise of 'neighbors helping neighbors.' 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," said Sarah Jarvis, vice president and general counsel.

Climate change has had a significant impact on the company — not only on its customers and policies, but also on the company's office building.

"Climate change has increased the frequency and severity of the weather events that cause property damage to the property owned by our policyholders. This means that we receive more claims for reimbursement, and also means that the claims are for larger dollar amounts than in years past," Jarvis said.

Union Mutual's downtown building was flooded in July 2023, and suffered hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage.

"Our building was unusable for several weeks while the lower level was dried out and while electricity, water and air circulation systems were restored. Many of our employees took time off from work to help with the community flood recovery efforts in Montpelier, Barre and Waterbury. In addition, the company sponsored two employee volunteer days in Cabot to help with that community's flood recovery efforts," Jarvis said.

The Vermont Department of Financial Regulation issued a report in 2021 examining the ongoing impact that climate change is having on Vermonters and the insurance companies.

According to the report, "Climate change presents unique challenges for the property and casualty insurance industry. Escalating severe weather events and weather extremes (i.e., record high temperatures, record rainfall events, etc.) have resulted and will continue to result in increased residential and commercial property losses, including for structural damage, relocation expenses, and loss of income."

Catastrophic events, such as the recent flood, account for 39% of claims and 42% of incurred losses, according to the state report.

The company is heavily involved in local charities. Currently, a team made up of employees and agents is working to raise $150,000 to benefit Special Olympics Vermont by participating in the Lake Champlain Penguin Plunge this weekend. Throughout the 2024 year, employees of the company will engage in department service days with local and regional nonprofit organizations.

Since Union Mutual started participating in the annual Penguin Plunge in 2016, the company has raised more than $600,000 for Special Olympics Vermont.

Charitable giving by the company amounts to $200,000 per year. A few examples of past grantees include Central Vermont Medical Center; Capstone Community Action; Good Samaritan Haven; Community Harvest of Central Vermont; Montpelier Alive; and Neighbors in Action.

"We are committed to meeting our corporate and social responsibilities by providing donations to worthy causes through the Union Mutual Charitable Giving Fund. The fund provides financial assistance to nonprofit organizations that support our agents, our employees and our business partners charitable causes within the communities in which we do business. The fund is designed to benefit organizations that work to improve the quality of life for individuals, families and communities. Applications for donation consideration must be submitted through the fund's grant application process," Jarvis said.

In addition to providing financial resources to nonprofit organizations, Union Mutual regularly sponsor employee volunteer days with Community Harvest of Central Vermont, Montpelier Alive's downtown beautification efforts, Green Up Vermont and Special Olympics Vermont.

"We also organize a backpack school supply drive every fall, and participate in a holiday-giving program for children in foster care," Jarvis said.

Union Mutual has received 10 consecutive "Best Places to Work in Vermont" created by Vermont Business Magazine, the Vermont Chamber of Commerce, the Vermont Department of Economic Development and others, and it has received the Governor's Excellence in Worksite Wellness Award, Gold Level, five years in a row.

UMFIC has 93 employees, 76 of them in Vermont. The company has 100,288 active policies, including 61,922 personal policies and 38,366 commercial policies.

Union Mutual is a property and casualty insurance company. Through the 1920s, the company was strictly a fire insurance company. Over the next two decades, additional types of protection were added and finally combined with a homeowner's package policy in 1950.

Currently, the company sells personal lines of insurance, such as auto policies and homeowners policies, as well as commercial lines of insurance, including business owners policies and contractors policies.

The company is licensed in New England and New York and works with 243 independent agents.