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| Type | Friendly society |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1843 |
| Headquarters | Bournemouth, England |
| Industry | Financial services |
| Products | Insurance |
| Website | lv.com |
LV= (Liverpool Victoria) is the UK's largest friendly society with approximately 1 million members. 1
Contents |
History and Legal Constitution
Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society Limited was founded in 1843 as a burial society, and for many decades Liverpool Victoria was most commonly associated with "penny policies" collected door to door by a cross country team of agents to provide a method of saving to people of modest means.
It is incorporated under the provisions of the Friendly Societies Act 1992 and has its registered address, and head office, at County Gates, Westbourne, Bournemouth BH1 2NF. It is regulated by the Financial Services Authority2.
As a mutual company LV= has no shareholders and is owned by its members.
Since May 2007 the society has traded under the "LV=" brand.
Business Activities
Today LV= is a diversified financial services group.
General insurance products covering motor, home, pet, travel and small business insurance are provided by Liverpool Victoria Insurance Company Limited. Products are sold both directly to the public over the telephone and internet and, under the ABC Insurance brand, through insurance brokers. This latter distribution channel was boosted in October 2008 by the acquisition of Highway Insurance Group PLC following a successful public offering for its shares. Since 2007 the general insurance division has also owned Britannia Rescue, the UK's fourth largest road rescue business.
Life assurance products covering term assurance, with-profits assurance and pensions are provided by Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society Limited and Liverpool Victoria Life Company Limited. Since January 2008 the product range has been augmented by flexible retirement solutions and equity release schemes through the acquisition from Swiss Re of the former G E Life businesses in the United Kingdom.
Fund management and OEICS are provided by Liverpool Victoria Asset Management Limited and Liverpool Victoria Portfolio Managers Limited.
While the head office is in Westbourne, LV= has significant branch offices in Croydon, Brentwood, The City of London, Hitchin, Bristol, Huddersfield and Exeter.
Brand and Image
Following the appointment of Mike Rogers as the new Chief Executive in 2006, LV= has undergone significant change in an effort to modernise its image and to re-invent itself in the face of the gradual industry-wide decline in with-profits assurance.
In early 2007 the name Liverpool Victoria was dropped (although it remains the formal name of most legal entities within the group) in favour of LV=. A distinctive green heart icon has also become a symbol of the group in its advertising, playing on the visual similarity of LV= to the word LOVE. Shortly after the rebranding LV= acquired the internet domain name LV.com, which the French luxury goods manufacturer Louis Vuitton had in November 2006 failed to acquire through a WIPO law suit. LV= is now one of the very few businesses worldwide to own a two letter ".com" domain name.3
In recent years the society has promoted itself through sponsorship of sport. As Liverpool Victoria, it sponsored the UK Snooker Championship from 1997-2000. It has sponsored the cricket County Championship since 2002, initially (2002-2005) as Frizzell (the name of an old established insurance business acquired in 1996), in 2006 as Liverpool Victoria and since 2007 as LV=.
In 2007, for the first time in the society's history, television advertising was employed for car insurance and life assurance, the fomer featuring the song Have Love, Will Travel, and the latter featuring Cilla Black.
References
- ^ Association of Friendly Societies Yearbook 2006/2007
- ^ Financial Services Authority Register
- ^ List of Large Companies that could buy their Two Letter Domains
External links
Wikipedia content modification information:
- This page was last modified on 31 October 2008, at 21:49.
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