National Life Group is an American life-insurance company based in Montpelier, Vermont. It is the trade name of National Life Insurance Company and its affiliates that offers life insurance and annuity products for individuals, families, and businesses. National Life Insurance Company was chartered in 1848 by the Vermont General Assembly.
History
National Life Insurance Company was chartered by the Vermont Legislature on November 13, 1848.[2][3][4] It has been insuring people for 175 years and was one of the first mutual life insurance companies in the U.S.[5] The company wrote its first policy on the life of Daniel Baldwin, a resident of Montpelier, on January 17, 1850. It also paid its first death claim only a few months after its founding at the death of Rowland Allen, who had bought two policies for face amounts of $500 each.[6] Rowland died while traveling to California in 1850. Other past insurance customers have included passengers on the Titanic, as well as victims of the 1918 influenza epidemic.[5]
The company became a member of the Vermont Chamber of Commerce in 1957.[7] National Life offers a range of financial services, including life insurance, and annuities.[8][5] The Group's customer base was more than 1,100,000 in 2021, life insurance in force totaled $252 billion.
The company is based in Montpelier, Vermont, with additional offices in Addison, Texas.[9][10][1] Several member companies make up National Life Group, including National Life Insurance Company, Life Insurance Company of the Southwest,[11] and Equity Services, Inc., a broker-dealer and registered investment adviser.[12] In 2017, National Life sold Sentinel mutual funds to Touchstone Investments.[13][14]
In 2018, The CEO Forum recognized National Life Group as one of “America’s Magnificent Eight Exceptional Companies.”[3] In 2019, the company expanded its strategic partnership with NTT DATA to accelerate digital transformation.[15] In 2019, It also expanded its partnership with Cognizant, an IT consulting corporation.[16]
From 2008 to 2019, the company saw a 252% growth in life insurance sales.[3] The national average was only about 6%.[3]
In March 2020, the company's CEO, Mehran Assadi, was awarded the Transformative CEO Award for Customer Experience in the insurance category by The CEO Forum.[17][18] In 2021, the company was ranked #1 in indexed life sales.[19] Nimesh Mehta was named ORBIE CIO of the year.[20] In 2022, National Life Group was named to the Inc. Best in Business list in the insurance category and under the Area of Impact: Black Entrepreneurship.[21][22] National Life created BUILD (Blacks Uplifted in Leadership) to address the shortage of people of color in leadership positions.[22]
During the coronavirus pandemic, the company made the decision to cover at-home antigen tests before a federal ruling required it of all self-insured and private health insurance companies.[23]
Authors Jackie and Kevin Freiberg, who wrote NUTS! Southwest Airlines’ Crazy Recipe for Business and Personal Success, feature National Life Group in their book CAUSE!.[24][25][26]
Corporate Responsibility
Founded in 2006, the National Life Group Foundation, the company's charitable foundation, sponsors various charitable events and programs focused on ending childhood hunger and supporting youth mental health.[27] The Foundation helps sponsor the LifeChanger of the Year Award.[28] In 2019 The Foundation funded the report, “Evidence-Based Strategies to End Childhood Food Insecurity and Hunger in Vermont”.[29][30][31] In 2023, the budget for the Foundation was $2.3 million.[32]
