May 1, 2019

By the Minutes: Entering the Era of Computers

In the pre-computer era for both Ixonia Mutual Insurance Company and Watertown Mutual Insurance Company, the company treasurers presented a general report at regular board meetings. This was a basic report covering the credit and debits from the mutual’s checking account. The treasurer then reported a complete financial picture to the directors at a year end meeting.

This tradition changed on August 24, 1983, when Ixonia Mutual’s directors received their first monthly income and expense statement. This report gave a complete, up-to-date financial picture of the mutual. It accounted for all changes such as unearned premium, unpaid loss reserves, investment changes. This monthly report was generated by hand and obviously was quite time consuming.

That same year when the directors met with their auditor for his year end report, he suggested they consider a computer. At their April 1984 meeting, the directors approved purchasing a Digital Rainbow computer, printer and software for the cost of $7,720. With this new computer, Ixonia Mutual’s staff was able to computerize the company’s accounting data with a program called AMI 1 (Automatic Mutual Insurance), which automated the mutuals financial records. Policy declarations however still had to be hand typed.

By the next year, Ixonia Mutual began using a separate software that prepared the policy declarations while still separately entering financial data into its accounting software. At this time the company converted all its policies to 1-year continued renewable policies and it discontinued fire-only policies.

In 1987 Ixonia Mutual upgraded its AMI 1 to AMI 2, which included policy and claims processing. This was a huge work savings, as it eliminated the need to add financial data in a separate action.

With the ability to process policies and manage accounting from a single program, Watertown Mutual decided to join the computerized world of insurance. They purchased their first computer in 1988.

Now today, Forward Mutual continues with an innovative mindset in its technological management. The company regularly upgrades its technology and is currently converting to its seventh policy and and accounting software system. Its policy processing and accounting systems are now web-based applications and it stores its data on the cloud.

“I foresee that possibly by year end we will no longer have a server even located in our office,” says President and CEO Lois Wiedenhoeft. “Technology has created enhancements in managing data that we never dreamed of in the 1980’s.”

Forward Mutual does all of this with the goal of protecting its insureds. From providing online payment opportunities to policyholders to contracting Gordon Flesch to manage its cyber security, Forward works to provide the highest quality of insurance to southern Wisconsin’s home and farm owners.

By the Minutes: Mutual Managers and Staff

By HOWARD WIEDENHOEFT

In the first 100 years for Ixonia Mutual Insurance Company and Watertown Mutual Insurance Company, the bylaws of both mutuals required the secretary to be the manager of the mutual.Eventually, each changed its bylaws to allow the directors to hire someone other than a director or secretary to run the mutual. Watertown Mutual was the first to make this change, when in 1987 it hired Gary Trebby to serve as its first non-director manager.

April 6, 2018

By the Minutes: Accounting Over the Years

By HOWARD WIEDENHOEFT

Forward Mutual recently held its annual policyholders meeting and, as is done every year, CEO and President Lois Wiedenhoeft and our CPA discussed its financial report. While often referred to as dry subject matter, an accounting of the year’s financial activity is an important story of the mutual’s strength and security.

Here is a bit of accounting history and changes along the way

March 13, 2018

By the Minutes: Introducing Agents to the Mutuals

Forward Mutual's bylaws

By HOWARD WIEDENHOEFT

In 1967, when Wisconsin legislature passed Assembly Bill 296, it allowed town mutuals to write packaged insurance policies and liability insurance. Yet the new law created many issues that were not addressed in it’s statues, such as surplus, advanced premium, unearned premium, and agent licenses. These issues also were not covered in Chapter 202, the state law governing town mutuals since 1937. The state moved to address these issues and codify the town mutual statue with Chapter 612. To rectify this, in 1973 legislature repealed Chapter 202 and replaced it with Chapter 612. Chapter 612 is still in effect today, with the last revision in 1997. [Read more…] about By the Minutes: Introducing Agents to the Mutuals

February 6, 2018

By the Minutes: Surviving the Big Dogs in the 1960s

Under the umbrella: Fire, Wind, Hail, Liability & Medical

By HOWARD WIEDENHOEFT

By the 1950s, Ixonia Mutual Insurance Company and Watertown Mutual Insurance Company had survived World War I, the Great Depression and World War II. Both companies steadfastly persevered under the long-term leadership of their secretaries. John Degner served Ixonia Mutual from 1944-1968. Arthur Linnes served Watertown Mutual from 1943-1971. Both mutuals, however, were slow to change and comfortable with writing just fire and lightning coverages, a practice shared by their mutual counterparts throughout the state. That they eventually added wind and supplemental coverages was only in response to their policyholders’ demands.

Then came the 1960s and future of town mutuals became seriously threatened. [Read more…] about By the Minutes: Surviving the Big Dogs in the 1960s

January 20, 2018

By the Minutes: How a Major Disaster Affected Extended Coverage and Reinsurance

Newspaper clippings of 1965 Palm Sunday Tornado, Forward Mutual Insurance Company

By HOWARD WIEDENHOEFT

In 1937 Wisconsin’s state law authorized mutuals the ability to write supplemental coverages for smoke, theft, and similar disasters, but it wasn’t until 1951 that it authorized extended coverage. Along with extended—also known as wind coverage—came the new requirement of reinsurance, where another insurance company takes on all or part of the risk covered under a policy issued by another insurance company in consideration of a premium payment. In 1951, the state law determined wind coverage had to either be 100% reinsured or the mutual’s wind losses must be capped at $2.50 per thousand of wind insurance in force. [Read more…] about By the Minutes: How a Major Disaster Affected Extended Coverage and Reinsurance

Mutual

Read more!

Here is a bit of accounting history and changes along the way