By Peter Smith, Boston MA
When it comes to community initiatives designed to help strengthen the capacity of local communities through charitable giving, many insurance companies have demonstrated an excellent track record. Chances are that you know someone in your community that has been directly affected by the charitable donations that large and small insurance companies make every year. Here are just a few examples of how insurer community initiatives play an important role in improving the lives of people throughout the United States.
NSI is a division of West Bend Mutual Insurance Company in Wisconsin and they get involved in their local community by sponsoring a Triple Play Partnership with the Madison Mallards. Donations are made to United Way by the company for each run and home run scored by the team. They also hosted a benefit for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure. NSI also works with the Middleton Outreach, U.W.’s Carbone Cancer Center and the Salvation Army. Their work ties in to the fact that they tend to insure many charities and non-profit organizations.
In Massachusetts, National Philanthropy Day will see MassMutual Life Insurance donating policies to celebrate this event, and has set a goal of offering free coverage of $1 billion. Policies are being offered to families that have incomes under $40,000 per year. MassMutual states that their active role in philanthropic events and activities is woven into their corporate culture.
As part of their Coach of the Year award, Liberty Mutual Insurance Company has offered to donate $1 million if two college teams can manage to play a penalty-free game this season. The money will be donated to a charity of the team’s choice. They have offered to split the $1 million award among teams if more than one penalty free game takes place during the season. The last time a game took place with no penalties in the Football Bowl Subdivision was in 1986.
In Des Moines, Iowa, ARAG has won the Best Kept Secret in Des Moines Award for 2010. The key factor in winning this award is ARAG’s ability to apply best-in-class practices and their ability to serve their community while maintaining a low profile while participating in charitable activities. ARAG provides legal insurance with an international premium base of $2 billion with 15.5 million customers worldwide.
These are good examples of donations from small to mid size insurers. One does not have to look far to find out some of the things that larger insurance companies participate in. State Farm Insurance has been recognized many times for its role in helping the community. They donated $90,000 for a DUI simulator in West Virginia, $50,000 to the American Heart Association, $16,000 to the Family Service of Roanoke. These are just a few of the many examples of how this large insurance company participates in philanthropic activities.
Allstate insurance has established the Allstate Foundation with the sole purpose of helping people. This foundation fosters many initiatives at the state and local level, including a Teen Safe driving program and a domestic violence program. In 2008 the Allstate Foundation’s total grants were $20,763,015. The foundation provides many types of grants subject to restrictive guidelines.
Insurance companies are in an excellent position to help raise awareness and participation in corporate philanthropy. The examples set by large insurers can not only guide others in terms of good practices, but also can also inspire community goodwill and outreach.
With a disciplined approach that comes from the structured business environment in which large insurance companies operate, goal setting and achievement is made easier and more effective when it comes to insurer community initiatives.
