South Easthope Mutual reports strong year, announces 15% premium refund

The incoming board of directors and senior management team for South Easthope Mutual Insurance Company in Tavistock. In the front row, from left, are Jeffrey Schultz, Lindsay Zehr (treasurer and CFO), Marianne Cook (first vice president), Jennifer Kearsey (president and CEO) and Michael Munro. In the back row, from left, are Paul Heinbuch, Darryl Stevenson, David Crane (newly elected president), Peter Thompson (second vice president), Glen Blair, Ken Yeoman (past president) and Rachel Stewart (corporate secretary). Gary West photo

By Gary West

South Easthope Mutual Insurance Company reported another successful year during its 154th annual meeting held last week in Tavistock.

Ken Yeoman, chair of the board of directors, addressed a large gathering of members and highlighted the company’s strong financial performance in 2025. As a result, the board has approved a 15 per-cent premium refund on property policies that were in force as of Dec. 31, 2025.

To qualify for the refund, policies must be in good standing on the day the refund is issued. Refund cheques are expected to be mailed to eligible members in April.

In his remarks, Yeoman noted severe weather events throughout the year led to increased claims in 2025.

“However, we were fortunate to avoid the worst weather events that impacted those around us,” he said.

Yeoman added the company remains focused on maintaining strong underwriting practices and promoting risk management and loss prevention among its members.

“Global climate patterns continue to shift, and we recognize that severe weather is not a matter of if, but when our membership areas will be impacted,” he said.

The chair also highlighted the long history of the company, noting South Easthope Mutual has been serving members in the region since 1871 and remains one of the strongest mutual insurance companies in Ontario.

He said 2025 marked another period of positive performance for the company, with steady premium growth in both the property and automobile sectors. Investment income was also strengthened, largely due to favourable market conditions throughout the year.

During the meeting, the company also announced a $1,500 donation to the muscular dystrophy campaign. Since beginning its annual support in 1998, South Easthope Mutual’s total contributions to the cause have now reached $40,000.

Insurance member Phil Schaefer chaired the latter portion of the meeting and conducted several items of board business. With a smile, he noted the historical connection between the company’s earliest meeting and the present-day gathering.

The first meeting of South Easthope Mutual took place in 1871 at Kaufman’s Tavern in Sebastopol. Schaefer joked it was somewhat ironic the annual meeting in 2026 was held in a church – Grace United Church in Tavistock.

The first member to sign up with the company was John Klein, whose descendants remain members of South Easthope Mutual today.

Guest speaker John Taylor, president and CEO of the Ontario Mutual Insurance Association in Cambridge, delivered an informative presentation on the history of Ontario’s farm mutual insurance companies.

Taylor noted the first mutual insurer in Ontario was Gore Mutual, established in Cambridge in 1839. Today, he said there are 33 mutual insurance companies operating across the province.

Together, those companies process approximately 97,000 claims annually, representing about $960 million in payouts from roughly $1.5 billion in premiums collected in 2025.