American Family Mutual Insurance Company, also abbreviated as AmFam, is an American private mutual company headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin. It focuses on property, casualty, and auto insurance, and also offers commercial insurance, life, health, and homeowners coverage as well as investment and retirement-planning products. The company is listed in the Fortune 500, with reported revenues of over $9.5 billion in 2017. when insurance salesman Herman Wittwer opened the doors of Farmers Mutual Insurance Company (not to be confused with the Farmers Insurance Group) in Madison, Wisconsin. At the time, the company's product was auto insurance and its target market was farmers. Wittwer believed that farmers represented lower insurance risks than urban drivers, as they drove less frequently and typically did not drive during winter months.

Over the course of a few years, Farmers Mutual expanded its market and product line to meet the changing needs of its customers. In 1963, Farmers Mutual changed its name to American Family Mutual Insurance Company to reflect its broader customer base. In March, 1995, American Family settled a redlining lawsuit, resulting in a $16 million payout to victims. The settlement was negotiated by the US Department of Justice and marked the first use of the federal Fair Housing Act of 1968 to counter discrimination in insurance; at the time it was the most costly insurance-company settlement ever for discrimination charges. In 2017, AmFam launched an ongoing campaign called DreamFearlessly. AmFam's company ambassadors use this as a hashtag on social media to help promote this campaign. The campaign encouraged consumers to express how they "dream fearlessly" for initiatives such as social justice, getting women into tech, and economic empowerment. Kathy Ireland and her team were brought on at an early point in the campaign to help with ambassador work. Blake Van Leer, a close supporter of the Society of Women Engineers, helped manage this campaign from its launch.

Subsidiaries

Companies of the American Family Insurance Group include:

  • American Family Mutual Insurance Company (AFMIC)
  • American Family Brokerage, Inc. (AFBI)
  • American Family Life Insurance Company (AFLIC)
  • American Family Securities, LLC (AFS)
  • American Standard Insurance Company (ASIC)
  • American Standard Insurance Company of Ohio (ASICO; Ohio subsidiary; companion to American Standard Insurance Company of Wisconsin)
  • Amfam.com, Inc. (AMFAM)
  • Connect (formerly Ameriprise Auto & Home)
  • HomeGauge, a provider of home inspection software.
  • Homesite Group Incorporated
  • Main Street America Insurance
  • Moonrise, Inc.
  • Networked Insights, an analytics company.

The company also offers a reward system for their insureds titled "Dreamkeep Rewards", which provides small to large rewards for completing various online tasks.

Operating territory

The American Family Insurance Group is based in Madison, Wisconsin, and as of 2011 has four regional corporate headquarters in Minnetonka/Eden Prairie, Minnesota; Saint Joseph, Missouri; Denver, Colorado; and Columbus, Ohio.

Significant milestones

Below is a list of milestones in the corporate history of American Family Mutual Insurance.

  • 1927 Farmers Mutual Automobile Insurance Company was founded on Oct. 3 in Madison, Wis.
  • 2017 American Family Insurance completed its acquisition of HomeGauge and Networked Insights
  • 2019 American Family Insurance completed its acquisition of Ameriprise Auto & Home; the subsidiary was renamed Connect in 2020.
  • 2021 American Family Insurance became the naming rights sponsor of the stadium of the Milwaukee Brewers, American Family Field.

Awards

In 2010, National Safety Council selected American Family Insurance as a recipient of its Teen Driving Safety Leadership Award. Through its “Teen Safe Driver Program,” the company has provided, a video feedback program (using the DriveCam system) in which parents can watch the driving actions of their teens. The program was validated by scientists at the University of Iowa to produce a 70% reduction in risky driving behavior. In 2015, American Family was recognized as the most LGBT-friendly insurance company by Out Magazine because of its discounts targeted at same-sex couples. Notable ambassadors include:

  • Kathy Ireland an American model, actress, author, and entrepreneur.
  • Derek Jeter an American former professional baseball shortstop, businessman, and baseball executive.
  • Christian Yelich is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Milwaukee Brewers of Major League Baseball.
  • Drew and Jonathan Scott, are talents in television, authors, designers, and co-founders of Scott Brothers Global.
  • Steve Stricker is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour and the PGA Tour Champions.
  • J. J. Watt an American football defensive end for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League. (Former Ambassador)
  • Kevin Durant an American professional basketball player for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association. (Former Ambassador)
  • John Legend an American singer, songwriter, producer, actor, and philanthropist. (Former Ambassador)

Charitable contributions

American Family Children’s Hospital

On March 4, 2003, American Family Insurance announced a $10 million gift launching the campaign to create the American Family Children's Hospital at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics. From the initial gift, the amount grew by several millions more through employee, agent, and additional corporate donations. The hospital opened for business in September 2007.

United Way

In 2007, and again in 2008, employees donated close to $1 million to United Way.

COVID-19 pandemic support

In April 2020, the company estimated the refunds to reflect $225 million in liquidity, contributing to the $200 million gain on personal insurance holders' premiums. American Family Insurance provided an additional COVID-19 pandemic mitigation premium of 10% on car policies.

References