Mutual insurance

Mutual insurance
A mutual insurance company is an insurance company owned entirely by its policyholders. It is a form of consumers' co-operative. Any profits earned by a mutual insurance company are either retained within the company or rebated to policyholders in the form of dividend distributions or reduced future premiums. In contrast, a stock insurance company is owned by investors who have purchased company stock; any profits generated by a stock insurance company are distributed to the investors without necessarily benefiting the policyholders.
History
The concept of mutual insurance originated in England in the late 17th century to cover losses due to fire. The mutual/casualty insurance industry began in the United States in 1752 when Benjamin Franklin established the Philadelphia Contributionship for the Insurance of Houses From Loss by Fire. Mutual property/casualty insurance companies exist now in nearly every country around the globe.
The global trade association for the industry, the International Cooperative and Mutual Insurance Federation, claims 216 members in 74 countries, in turn representing over 400 insurers. In North America the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies (NAMIC), founded in 1895, is the sole representative of U.S. and Canadian mutual insurance companies in the areas of advocacy and education.
Recent developments in the United States
The "mutual holding company" structure was first introduced in Iowa in 1995, and has spread since then. There have been concerns that the mutual holding company conversion is disadvantageous for the owners of the company, the policyholders.
The major disadvantage of mutual insurance companies is the difficulty of raising capital.
In the 111th Congress, Carolyn Maloney sponsored a bill that she claimed would have protected mutual holding company owners. The measure died in committee.
Mutual holding companies are one way to undergo privatization, also called demutualization.
List of mutual insurance companies
Multinational
Association Internationale de la Mutualité
Bermuda
Oil Insurance Limited
Canada
Denmark
Tryg (owned 60% by the mutual company Tryghedsgruppen)
Lærerstandens Brandforsikring
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Insurance Company (Tryggingarfelagið Føroyar)
Finland
Pohjantähti Mutual Insurance www.pohjantahti.fi
Mutual Insurance Company Turva www.turva.fi
France
General Mutual insurance companies
Groupama
MACIF
Matmut
MAAF
MMA
SMACL
Thélem Assurances
Mocf
Mutlog
Health insurance companies
ACORIS Mutuelles
Almutra
Avenir Santé Mutuelle
Choralis Mutuelle le libre choix
Complévie
CMIP
EMOA Mutuelle du Var
Groupe Victor HUGO
La Maison du Fonctionnaire
La Mutuelle Catalane
La Mutuelle des Remparts
MBA Mutuelle
MCEN
M Comme Mutuelle
MFCF
Mutuelle Entrain
Mutuelle Générale d'Avignon
Mutuelle Générale des Cheminots
MIPSS Auvergne
MOAT
Mutuelle Matra Hachette
Mutuelle du Pays Martégal
Mutuelle du Pays de Vaucluse
Mutuelle du Rempart
Mutuelle SEPR
Mutuelle SERAMM
Mutuelles du Soleil
Precocia
Sereina Mutuelle
Mutualia
Mutuelle Générale
Harmonie Mutuelle*
MNT
Germany
Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Versicherungsvereine auf Gegenseitigkeit e.V.
VERBAND DER VERSICHERUNGSVEREINE
Japan
Asahi Mutual Life Insurance Company
Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Company
Nippon Life Insurance Company
Sumitomo Life Insurance Company
New Zealand
FMG Insurance
MAS
Philippines
Insular Life
Slovenia
Vzajemna
South Africa
PPS (Professional Provident Society)
Iemas
AVBOB
Spain
Mutua Madrileña
Sweden
Alecta
Dina Försäkringar
Folksam
Länsförsäkringar
Skandia
United Kingdom
Shepherds Friendly Society
Education Mutual
The Equitable Life Assurance Society
NFU Mutual
Engage Mutual Assurance
Health Shield
Royal London Group
Together Mutual Insurance
The Military Mutual
Scottish Friendly
UIA Mutual
United States
See also
Protection and indemnity insurance
References
Further reading
Emery, Herbert, and George Emery. A Young Man’s Benefit: The Independent Order of Odd Fellows And Sickness Insurance in the United States and Canada, 1860–1929 (McGill-Queen's University Press, 1999).
Van Leeuwen, Marco H.D. Mutual Insurance, 1550–2015: From Guild Welfare and Friendly Societies to Contemporary Micro-Insurers (Palgrave Macmillan, 2016) 321 pp. online review, A standard scholarly history
External links
NAMIC – National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies
ICMIF – International Cooperative and Mutual Insurance Federation
AFM – Association of Financial Mutuals (UK)
University of Wisconsin Center for Cooperatives: Research on the Economic Impact of Cooperatives. Economic Impacts of Cooperatives › Financial Services > Mutual Insurance
Cooperatives
Mutualism (movement)
Types of insurance