Throughout the year, the Insurance Alliance of Michigan is highlighting our member companies so you can learn more about each of them and the work they're doing to protect our families, homes and businesses and make our roads safer.
Frankenmuth Insurance is headquartered in – you guessed it – Frankenmuth, Michigan, and has been since 1868. Beyond its home base, Frankenmuth Insurance also works with agency partners in more than 330 locations throughout the state. You can learn more about them on their website, or on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
How many people do you employ?
Approximately 750 full- and part-time employees.
How many independent agents do you work with?
In total, we partner with 623 agencies with nearly 6,000 independent agents across 15 states.
What types of insurance do you offer?
Because insurance is both complicated and critical to people’s lives, we work exclusively with independent agents to provide business, home, auto and life insurance as well as surety bonds.
The coverages we offer are broad ranging, too, from cyber and information protection for business to dwelling fire and marine for personal.
What charitable giving efforts is your company involved in?
Our ‘neighbor helping neighbor’ value holds true after 150 years of operation. Frankenmuth Insurance is committed to supporting the communities where our employees, agents and policyholders live and work. The Frankenmuth Insurance Foundation was established to focus the company’s charitable efforts on three areas: Charities, Scholarships and Educational Opportunities.
Our foundation’s charitable contributions support organizations based in Michigan’s Great Lakes Bay Region that promote health and wellness; safety; and cultural enrichment. This includes support for the American Cancer Society, American Red Cross, Castle Museum of Saginaw County, Frankenmuth Auto Fest, Frankenmuth Bavarian Festival, Michigan’s Military & Space Heroes Museum, Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra, Travis Mills Foundation and United Way of Saginaw County.
Scholarships and educational opportunities we support promote innovation and mentorship. Institutions supported by our foundation include Central Michigan University College of Medicine, Delta College, Ferris State University, Northwood University and several Great Lakes Bay Region high schools.
What sets your company apart from others in your industry?
Frankenmuth Insurance places a high value on establishing meaningful relationships with our agency partners. Our leadership is accessible and open to having frank conversations with all partners. We also support agency partners by giving field managers full underwriting authority to assess risk and provide timely decisions.
Additionally, we hang our hat on our fast, fair claims service. Last year, we earned a 95 percent satisfaction rating from policyholders experiencing a claim.
Our commitment to provide peace of mind carries through all our operations to benefit our agency partners and policyholders.
The insurance industry has played a big part in Michigan’s comeback. Why should recent college graduates consider a career in insurance?
We often say there are four compelling reasons people should consider working in the insurance industry.
Variety – there are many skills needed within an insurance company, including information technology, communications, customer service and finance.
Stability – the industry has been around since the mid-18th century.
Opportunity—more than 2.3 million job opportunities to be precise, and this number is projected to grow over the next 10 years as many in the workforce plan to retire.
Congeniality – we get to help people protect their futures.
To support the next generation of insurance professionals, Frankenmuth Insurance sponsors an Insurance Leadership Academy for high school students, offers endowed scholarships in support of risk management programs at several Michigan universities, provides scholarships to college students interested in insurance careers, and offers summer internship opportunities to students pursuing insurance careers.
What Michigan landmark best represents your company?
The Willkommen welcome sign greeting visitors to Frankenmuth.
In Frankenmuth, Michigan, neighbors have always pitched in to help each other. From the area’s earnest beginnings in 1845 to the vibrant tourist destination of today, this community and its businesses support a strong model of service and commitment. Our company grew out of this spirit more than 150 years ago. While our business has advanced through the years, our core values of commitment, caring and teamwork stay true.
Is there anything else you would like lawmakers, staff or other thought leaders to know about your company?
Frankenmuth Insurance is a super-regional company serving 15 states, but Michigan will always be home. More than three-quarters of our employees and more than one-third our agency partners are in Michigan.
With such strong ties to the Great Lakes State, we are fully committed to helping agents and policyholders navigate recent changes to Michigan’s No-Fault Law. While we support reform of Michigan Personal Insurance Protection coverage, we know there will be some challenges ahead. As we continue to study and implement required changes with minimal disruption to our services, we are also focusing on long-term impacts. We are optimistic the reforms will lead to positive outcomes.