Insurance for All
2007 marks the centennial celebration of the founding of savings bank life insurance.
At the same time the United States suffered through the "Panic of 1907" with the third-worst stock market crash in its history, a highly respected Boston lawyer was helping change the face of the life insurance industry.
This year marks the centennial celebration of Louis D. Brandeis' significant role in the passage of Chapter 561 of the Acts of 1907, an act permitting savings banks incorporated under the laws of Massachusetts to establish departments for the issuance of life insurance and annuities. Following that accomplishment, Brandeis helped establish the first Savings Bank Life Insurance Department. The first policy was issued in 1908.
The formation of the savings bank life insurance system helped working class citizens and immigrants get life insurance. Brandeis--deemed the "people's attorney"--continued advocating for the cause even in 1916 when he was appointed by President Woodrow Wilson as the first Jewish justice named to the United States Supreme Court.
"SBLI started as a social experiment and now has grown to be a commercial success," said Robert Sheridan, president and chief executive officer of the Savings Bank Life Insurance Company of Massachusetts. "Justice Brandeis was reacting to the very pervasive scandal in the industry where policyholders were being taken advantage of and there was a lot of excessive spending going on. He considered the creation of SBLI to be his greatest achievement."
SBLI changed over the years. "For years, things worked well, but SBLI limits and powers were severely restricted because of opposition from the life insurance industry--from both companies and agents. The company went through several iterations in the modern day, and in 1987 legislation took effect that increased limits to $250,000 and made other improvements," said Sheridan.
In 1992, legislation enabled SBLI to reorganize into a closely held Massachusetts life insurance company, thus giving SBLI the same powers as other Massachusetts insurers and opening up geographic and distribution sales channels. In 1998, the company marked a financial milestone by surpassing the $23 billion mark of insurance in force, Sheridan said.
Earlier this year, SBLI rolled out a year-long celebration marking the centennial of its founding. More than 200 Greater Boston business, government, academic and community leaders attended a kick-off event at the Suffolk University Law School in Boston.
At the center of SBLI's centennial celebration is its sponsorship of a one-hour documentary film on the life and achievements of Brandeis. The company premiered the documentary, entitled Louis Brandeis: The People's Attorney, in March at Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass. The documentary also will be broadcast throughout the year on various PBS television stations nationwide.
Born in Louisville, Ky., shortly before the Civil War, Brandeis advocated for a number of social causes throughout his lifetime. His first major victory came when he blocked a company from securing a monopolistic right to operate Boston's subway system. Brandeis is quoted as once saying "most of the things worth doing in the world have been declared impossible before they were done."
SBLI continues to prosper today as what it says is the leading provider of ordinary life insurance in Massachusetts. The company is licensed in 14 states and the District of Columbia, and Sheridan said it has almost $2 billion in assets and $200 million in capital and surplus. The company is ranked the 108th largest U.S. life insurance writer based on admitted assets by the A.M. Best Co. "We're very proud of SBLI and what we're doing for consumers; Justice Brandeis is in our DNA. We'll continue on with his mission: to provide safe, low-cost life insurance in a consumer-centric way," he said.
By Lori Chordas, senior associate editor, Best's Review: Lori.Chordas@ambest.com
