Lebanon Mutual History
Lebanon Mutual Insurance Company began writing fire insurance for local businesses, dwellings and farms in 1856. To be more exact, a charter was granted to
The
Lebanon Mutual Insurance Company on June 18, 1856. On that same date the company occupied its first office in Jonestown, a small town located five miles north of Lebanon, Pennsylvania. The office was relocated over the years to three different locations within the city of Lebanon. In 1964 the office moved to its present location at 137 West Penn Avenue, Cleona, PA. Cleona is located just west of Lebanon on busy Rt. 422. Interestingly, considering our proximity to Hershey, the building currently occupied by the company was originally a candy factory.
Beginning as a “county mutual” writing only fire insurance, Lebanon Mutual has grown into a statewide carrier offering a full range of property and casualty insurance to both commercial and personal customers. Presently nearly 70% of our writings are commercial lines. Our products are distributed through an independent agency system consisting of over one hundred agents located throughout the state of Pennsylvania.
In 1996 our direct written premiums stood at just over twelve million dollars while our policyholder’s surplus was less than 5.5 million. At the end of 2006 written premiums have increased modestly while our policyholder’s surplus has nearly doubled. This controlled growth coupled with improving financial strength has not been a matter of chance. Rather, the company blends careful corporate planning with solid financial investment practices to achieve realistic goals. This has enabled Lebanon Mutual to meet the market fluctuations and legislative dictates of the new century thus far and we will continue to do so. We feel our experienced underwriting staff is second to none and our “paperless” file environment is state of the art. Our new user friendly rating system, when fully implemented, will put us close to the cutting edge of technology in that area.
Today’s Lebanon Mutual is made up of a highly motivated team of professionals. Together with the highest quality vendors available we strive to offer superior service, to bring you the insurance products you need and to offer affordable pricing. We are proud of our history to be sure, but our eyes are trained on the future and whatever challenges and opportunities lie there.