Union Insurance Company
The Union Insurance Company was established on November 20 1824 as the Scottish Union Insurance Company. In 1833, the company obtained a royal charter and was incorporated under an act of parliament on April 9 1847.
Company History
Scottish Union andNational Insurance Company policy
Scottish Union and National Insurance Company extract of grant of arms
James Gibson Nicoll
Scottish Union and National Insurance Company Birmingham office, 1898
Scottish Union and National Insurance Company prospectus, c.1900
The company commenced business on February 1 1825 and, according to its first prospectus, offered :
"insurances on property against loss by fire, with power to embrace insurance in lives and survivorship if it shall be so determined."
The company exercised that power with little delay, issuing its first life policy within a month of starting business.
On January 31 1877, the company merged with the Scottish National Insurance Company and changed its name to the Scottish Union and National Insurance Company. The merger had been opposed by the North British and Mercantile Insurance Company and the Edinburgh Life Assurance Company but an act of parliament approving the amalgamation received royal assent in May 1878 and the merger went ahead.
In the following years, the company moved to extend its business both at home and overseas. It established a burglary department in 1905 and, with the acquisition of Lancashire and Yorkshire Accident Insurance Company Ltd, started to transact accident business the following year.
By 1909, the company was offering insurance against fire, lightning and explosion, personal accident and illness, burglary and theft, glass breakage, employers' liabilities, third-party liabilities, transit of securities, fidelity, property owners' liabilities, motor car risks, horse-driving accidents, marine, life and endowments, annuities and pensions, leasehold and capital redemptions. By 1927, it had added wireless installations, householders' consolidated, boiler explosion, machinery risks and lift accidents insurance.
The company underwent a number of changes in the following decades. On November 6 1948, it was incorporated as the Scottish Union and National Insurance Company and, in 1959, was acquired by the Norwich Union Fire Insurance Society Ltd. By 1991, the company's principal activity was the transaction of short-term insurance business.
On November 27 2002, the company changed its name to Aviva Insurance Ltd and again, two days later, to Aviva Insurance. On August 15 2006, the company was renamed the Union Insurance Company and on September 23 2008 it was put into liquidation.
Key dates
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1824 | The company is established |
| 1833 | The company obtains a royal charter |
| 1847 | The company is incorporated under an act of parliament |
| 1877 | The company merges with the Scottish National Insurance Company |
| 1877 | Name changes to the Scottish Union and National Insurance Company |
| 1959 | The company is acquired by the Norwich Union Fire Insurance Society |
| 2002 | Name changes to Aviva Insurance |
| 2006 | Name changes to the Union Insurance Company |
| 2008 | Goes into liquidation |
Did you know...?
- Alexander Henderson, one of the company's first directors, was also Lord Provost and founder of the National Bank of Scotland.
- Sir Walter Scott was governor of the company from 1824 until his death in 1832, although he did not attend any meetings after 1829. Scott also insured his home, Abbotsford, with the company and claimed on the policy for a fire in 1827.
- In 1840, William Gladstone insured his property with the company.
- In 1857, the Marques of Queensbury, who later established the rules of boxing, was deputy governor of the company.
- 35 St Andrew Square, the address of the company's head office between 1878 and 1973, had an interesting history. Formerly known as the Douglas Hotel, it was patronised by a variety of royal guests and hosted Sir Walter Scott on his final journey back to Abbotsford in 1832. Another illustrious visitor was Empress Eugenie, wife of Napoleon III, who stayed at the hotel in 1860.
- The company paid out £200,000 in claims following the San Francisco earthquake disaster in 1906.
Subsidiaries and constituents
| Year | Company name |
|---|---|
| 1809 - 1849 | Hercules Fire Insurance Company |
| 1841 - 1877 | Scottish National Insurance Company |
| - 1883 | Franklin Company of Boston |
| 1877 - 1906 | Lancashire and Yorkshire Insurance Company Ltd |
| 1838 - 1913 | City of Glasgow Life Assurance Company |
| 1864 - 1914 | Maritime Insurance of Liverpool |
| 1923 | Central Union Insurance Company of New York |
| 1923 | American Union Insurance Company of New York |
| c1919 - 1924 | Compania de Seguros "La Victoria Insurance Company", Chile |
| 1885 - 1953 | Scottish National Key Registry and Assurance Association Ltd |
| c1958 | Drewpen Investments Ltd |
| 1959 | Flinax Investments Limited |
| 1866 - 1985 | N.V. Verzekering Maatschappij "Schiedam" van 1866 (transferred from Norwich Union) |
| 1976 - 1985 | Heritage Insurance Company of Zimbabwe (Private) Ltd (transferred from Norwich Union) |
Head office premises
Edinburgh
| Year | Address |
|---|---|
| 1824 - 1825 | Apartment in Fortune's Hotel, 15 Princes Street |
| 1825 - 1829 | Corner of North Bridge and Princes Street |
| 1829 - 1878 | 47 George Street |
| 1878 - 1973 | 35 St Andrew Square (purchased 1877) |
| 1973 - 1997 at least | 32-34 St Andrew Square |
London
| Year | Address |
|---|---|
| by 1864 - 1877 | 37 Cornhill |
| 1877 - 1909 | 3 King William Street |
| 1909 - 1942 | 5 Walbrook |
| 1942 - 1957 | Northgate House, 20-24 Moorgate |
| 1957 - | Scottish Union House, Bucklersbury |
| London no longer listed as a main branch after 1960 | |
Staff and officials
Secretary
| Year | Name |
|---|---|
| 1824 - 1825 | Duechar & Knox |
| 1825 - 1845 | David Forrest |
| 1845 - 1877 | James Barlas |
| 1877 - 1886 | Peterswald Pattison |
| 1886 - 1907 | John Kennedy Macdonald |
| 1907 - 1928 | John Gunn |
| 1928 - 1939 | Edward Charles Somner (joint secretary) |
| 1928 - 1939 | George Hutchinson Clark (joint secretary) |
| 1939 - 1942 | Walter Dickson Scott |
| 1942 - 1957 | James S Henderson |
| 1957 - 1969 | A L Smith |
| 1969 - 1970 | P M Chase |
| 1970 - 1975 | E J Holland |
| 1976 - 1983 | H H Scurfield |
| 1983 - 1989 | D P Lister |
| 1989 - 1992 | H W Utting |
| 1992 - 1993 | J D Stanforth |
| 1993 - 1997 | M Oxbury |
| 1997 - | D Parker |
Manager
| Year | Name |
|---|---|
| 1824 - 1844 | Sutherland Mackenzie |
| 1844 - 1876 | George Ramsay |
| 1877 - 1890 | John M'Candlish (title changed to general manager in 1878) |
| 1890 - 1903 | Alexander Duncan |
| 1903 - 1924 | James Allan Cook |
| 1924 - 1938 | James Gibson Nicoll |
| 1938 - 1949 | Thomas Edward Stevens |
| 1950 - 1957 | Norman J Johnston |
| 1957 - 1960 | James S Henderson |
| 1960 - 1962 | Ernest S A Mathie |
| 1962 - 1975 | Basil Robarts (title changed to chief general manager in 1962) |
| 1975 - 1984 | P W Sharman |
| 1984 - 1989 | V W Hughff |
| 1989 - 1994 | Allan Bridgewater (title changed to group chief executive in 1989) |
Actuary
| Year | Name |
|---|---|
| 1828 - 1859 | Nicholas Grut Jr |
| 1859 - 1861 | John Allan |
| 1861 - 1877 | Hunter Douglas Prain |
| 1877 - 1891 | John M'Candlish (also general manager) |
| 1891 - 1904 | Colin McCuaig |
| 1904 - 1940 | Hugh Wylie Brown |
| 1940 - 1947 | Alfred William Bews |
| 1947 - 1964 | Laurence Morton Butt |
| 1964 - 1969 | D W C Bell |
London secretary
| Year | Name |
|---|---|
| 1871 - 1877 | Robert Strachan |
| 1877 - 1901 | William Porteous |
| 1901 - 1910 | William G Glennie |
| 1910 - 1925 | James Gibson Nicoll |
| 1925 - 1927 | Arthur John Queen |
| 1927 - 1935 | Herbert Francis Kirrage |
| 1935 - 1938 | William Leonard Pike |
| Position not listed after 1938 | |
London manager
| Year | Name |
|---|---|
| 1935 - 1941 at least | Herbert Francis Kirrage |
| by 1943 - 1946 | P H Foster |
| 1946 - 1949 | Norman J Johnston |
| 1949 - 1960 | Baron A Anstey |
Governor (1824)
- Sir Walter Scott
Extraordinary directors (1824)
- William Aitchison of Drummore
- James Ballantyne
- J Borthwick Younger of Crookston
- Thomas Dallas
- William Hozier of Newlands
- Andrew Johnston
- General Maxwell of Parkhill
- James McBriare of Fishwick and Tweed Hill
- Alexander Scott of Trinity
- Andrew Skene
- Sir Henry Steward
- Lt General Graham Stirling
Ordinary directors (1824)
- Rt Hon Alexander Henderson, Lord Provost of Edinburgh
- Admiral Sir David Milne
- I S Moore
- Peter Forbes
- John Balfour
- Frances Brodie
- Adam Anderson
- William Allan
- Adam Black
- James Hill
- John Learnmouth
- A B Blyth
- George Aitchison
- James Reoch
- Robert Falkner
Directors (1878)
- James Turnbull
- Andrew Thomson
- John Logan
- James Taylor
- Colin Mackenzie
- William Dickson
- John Kennedy
- John M Crabbie
- James Mansfield
- John Mackenzie
- Hew Crichton
- Robert Hutchinson
- John Wright
- John Cowan
- Daniel Ainslie
- Andrew Jameson
Home agencies
- Carlisle (1828)
- Newcastle (1828)
- Belfast (1833)
- London (1833) (life only)
- Liverpool (1833)
- Manchester (1833)
- Birmingham (1833)
- Huddersfield (1833)
- Devonport (by 1850)
- Exeter (by 1850)
- Plymouth (by 1850)
- Tiverton (by 1850)
Home branches
- London City (1837)
- Bradford (1876)
- Glasgow (1876)
- Liverpool (1876)
- Leeds (1876)
- Manchester (1876)
- Birmingham (1878)
- Newcastle (1878)
- Bristol (1892)
- Nottingham (1892)
- West End (1892)
- Southampton (1894)
- Dundee (1895)
- Aberdeen (1902)
- Plymouth (1903)
- Ipswich (1905)
- Cardiff (1906)
- Carlisle (1907)
- Leicester (1909)
- Sheffield (1909)
- West Hartlepool (1919)
- Hull (1920)
- Inverness (1921)
- Swansea (1922)
- Huddersfield (1923)
- Blackpool (1924)
- Derby (1924)
- Hereford (1924)
- Cambridge (1931)
Overseas agencies
- Dublin, Ireland (1837)
- Paris, France (1878) (joint agency with Caledonian)
- San Francisco, United States (1879)
- Rangoon, Myanmar (Burma) (1879)
- Hartford, United States (1880)
- Shanghai, China (1880)
- Calcutta, India (1880)
- Gothenburg, Sweden (1880)
- Port Elizabeth, South Africa (1881)
- Colombo, Ceylon (Sri Lanka) (1881)
- Yokohama, Japan (1881)
- Montreal, Canada (1882)
- Hong Kong (1882)
- Valparaiso, Chile (1884)
- Melbourne and Sydney, Australia (1884)
- Christchurch, New Zealand (1884)
- Argentina (1885)
- Copenhagen, Denmark (1886)
- Bombay, India (1887)
- Hamburg, Germany (1887)
- Barbados (1887)
- Antwerp, Belgium (1889)
- Kingston, Jamaica (1889)
- Kobe, Japan (1889)
- Rotterdam and Amsterdam, Netherlands (1891)
- Java, Indonesia (1891)
- Lima, Peru (1884)
- St Petersburg, Russia (1890)
- Penang, Malaysia (by 1912)
- Singapore (by 1920)
Overseas branches
- New York, United States (1880)
- Montreal, Canada (by 1892)
- Melbourne, Australia (1891)
- Cape Town, South Africa (1907)
- Calcutta, India (1909)
- Shanghai, China (1920)
- San Francisco, United States (1923)
- Adelaide, Australia (1925)
- Brisbane, Australia (1925)
- Bombay, India (1927)
- Hobart, Tasmania (1931)
- Durban South Africa (1931)
- Nairobi, South Africa (1931)
- Buenos Aires, Argentina (1934)
- Santiago, Chile (1934)
Published history
One Hundred Years - A brief Chronicle of the Scottish Union and National Insurance Company, 1824 - 1924 by W Forbes Gray. H & J Pillans & Wilson, Edinburgh, 1924.
In the archives
The Aviva archive contains records relating to the running of the Union Insurance Company between 1824 and 1997. The collection includes board, general and committee minutes; annual reports and accounts; acts of parliament; powers of attorney; policy registers; ledgers; policies; proposals; journals; promotional material; instructions to agents; newspaper cuttings; fire marks; prospectuses and correspondence.
