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By HOWARD WIEDENHOEFT<\/p>\n
In 1967, when Wisconsin legislature passed\u00a0Assembly Bill 296<\/a>, 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\u00a0Chapter 202,<\/a>\u00a0the state law governing town mutuals since 1937<\/a>. 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 To rectify this, in 1973 legislature repealed Chapter 202<\/a> and replaced it with\u00a0Chapter 612<\/a>. Chapter 612 is still in effect today, with the last revision in 1997.<\/p>\n When\u00a0Watertown Mutual was formed in 1872,<\/a> the mutual’s secretary and 3-4 appointed directors wrote the insurance policies. At the time, the directors did not need to be licensed insurance agents and did not need to be listed with the state as agents for the mutual. Watertown Mutual wrote its polices for 5-year terms until 1948, when it shortened the policies to 3-year terms.<\/p>\n Just down the road, Ixonia Mutual was formed in 1875<\/a> and only the secretary wrote policies. The policies were 3-year terms and when the term expired a complete new policy had to be written (which subsequently required the insured to pay a policy fee). Ixonia Mutual continued to write 3-year policies until November 1985 when it began writing continuous renewable policies. At that time, the mutual also discontinued writing fire-only policies.<\/p>\n In 1973, Chapter 612 brought changes to Wisconsin’s town mutuals. This required agents selling insurance to be licensed and listed with the state. Directors who had been serving as agents were grandfathered with licenses, but new agents were required to pass the state insurance license exam and receive an insurance agent license. As a result, both Ixonia Mutual and Watertown Mutual began to use and list independent agents. It was the first time for both mutuals that their agents were not required to be directors. They paid their agents by commission instead of the policy fee. Interestingly, our longtime CEO and President Howard Wiedenhoeft acquired his license in 1974.<\/p>\n Today, 19 independent agents sell Forward Mutual insurance. And according to Forward’s bylaws, no agent selling Forward Mutual insurance may serve on its board of directors. This is one of many ways Forward protects the interests of both its agents and policyholders.<\/p>\n By the Minutes: Introduction<\/a><\/p>\n 1872 Watertown Mutual Founded<\/a><\/p>\n 1875 Ixonia Mutual Founded<\/a><\/p>\n Comparing the Capitalizing of Two Early Mutuals<\/a><\/p>\n A Mutual\u2019s First Claim<\/a><\/p>\n Supporting Dairy in the Late 1800s<\/a><\/p>\n 1879 Early Challenges for a Young Mutual<\/a><\/p>\n Ixonia Mutual\u2019s First $1000 Loss<\/a><\/p>\n 1885 A Year of Neighbor Helping Neighbor<\/a><\/p>\n Changes of Bylaws<\/a><\/p>\n Our Dairy Heritage<\/a><\/p>\n Insuring Automobiles<\/a><\/p>\n Taxes, War and the English Language<\/a><\/p>\n Supporting the Community\u2019s Fire Protection<\/a><\/p>\n Board Directors and Their Meetings<\/a><\/p>\n Standardization of Wisconsin Mutuals<\/a><\/p>\n Of Electricity, Radio and Foxes<\/a><\/p>\n Our Annual Meetings Over the Years<\/a><\/p>\n Tumultuous 1930-1940s<\/a><\/p>\n How a Major Disaster Affected Extended Coverage and Reinsurance<\/a><\/p>\n Surviving the Big Dogs in the 1960s<\/a><\/p>\n Introducing Agents to the Mutuals<\/a><\/p>\n Accounting Over the Years<\/a><\/p>\n Centennial Anniversaries<\/a><\/p>\n Mutual Offices<\/a><\/p>\n Mutual Managers and Staff<\/a><\/p>\n Establishing Confidence in Financial Strength<\/a><\/p>\n Entering the Era of Computers<\/a><\/p>\n The 1990s, Advancement and Angst<\/a><\/p>\n The Start of the 21st Century<\/a><\/p>\n Concord and Watertown Merge<\/a><\/p>\n Ixonia Mutual and Watertown Mutual Merge and a New Company is Formed<\/a><\/p>\n Setting the Stage, Moving Forward with a New 2020 Vision<\/a><\/p>\n
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