January 2021 COVID-19 Update from Our President

Dear Policyholder Members,

I’m writing to keep you updated on the happenings of your company during this stay-at-home order.

For the foreseeable future, our offices will remain closed to the public. We apologize for this inconvenience but feel it necessary that we do our part in helping minimize a potential spread to keep everyone safe from the virus, while maintaining operations as an essential service. We remain safely able to process mail, issue cheques, accept payments and print policies.

While the stay-at-home order imposes limitations on in-person meetings, we continue to be just a phone call or email away from responding to your policy questions and claims needs. Your agent or broker remains your best first-person contact.

We continue to closely monitor recommendations from our local board of health. As the situation changes, we will adapt as needed.

Currently, we are closing out our 2020 financials and completing our auditing procedures. Our board will soon review the financials and determine whether or not a refund of premium to members is possible for 2020. My earlier comment regarding an auto premium refund still stands. If we can, we will.

The pandemic is not the start to the New Year that we had all be hoping for. 2021 is the 150th anniversary of your company. Just a bit of trivia: It was established in South Easthope Township under the Mutual Insurance Companies Act of Ontario (modified from the original 1838 Act of Upper Canada.) The organizational meeting was held at the Kaufmann Hotel in Sebastopol (at the northern edge of Tavistock) in October 1871 (just 4 years after confederation!) Members started to sign up in December. Typically, the 1st member to commit was the person elected as Board President. Our first member was John Klein who farmed in South Easthope Township.

This is the 2nd global pandemic that members of South Easthope Mutual have had to endure (the 1st being the 1918 Spanish Flu). We’re in a frustrating period in our history but we’re all in this together, doing our part to stay healthy.

Thank you for your patience and for your support of South Easthope Mutual.

Sincerely,

 

Frank A. Rider, CIP

President