About Us

At Shelter Reinsurance, we specialize in property excess of loss and pro-rata reinsurance treaties outside of Shelter Mutual's operating territory. We value our long term relationships and continually look for ways to help our partners achieve their goals while providing competitive rates and excellent claim service.

Our History

  1. 1946
  2. 1957
  3. 1962
  4. 1981
  5. 1986
  6. 2016
  7. 2024

  1. MFA Mutual Insurance Company Founded

    Before Shelter Insurance® was Shelter, it was MFA Mutual Insurance for farmers who needed access to reliable insurance protection at prices they could afford. The MFA Mutual Insurance Company began operations on January 1, 1946, with seven employees and a $100,000 loan from the Missouri Farmers Association. Before its 7th anniversary, MFA Mutual was the largest mutual casualty insurance company in Missouri.

  2. Growth and Expansion: New Headquarters

    MFA Mutual grew, and in 1957 the company moved in to a newly constructed headquarters building in Columbia, Missouri. 

  3. Operating Territory Enlarged, Regional Claims Service Introduced

    By the early 1960s, our sales territory had expanded into Arkansas, Kansas, Nebraska, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Tennessee, Indiana, and Oklahoma. We were serving the needs of our policyholders with 12 branch claims offices. The Springfield, Missouri, branch office featured a drive-in claims facility. Another expansion effort in the 1970s added Colorado, Mississippi, and Louisiana to the Shelter map.

  4. We Became Shelter Insurance Companies

    In 1981 we broke away from MFA and developed an entirely new identity. First, we changed our logo from the familiar MFA Insurance "shield" to the "Shield of Shelter." Then we changed the company name to Shelter Insurance®.

  5. Shelter Reinsurance Company Formed

    We went international in 1986, inviting clients worldwide to do business with the new Shelter Reinsurance Company. 

  6. ShelterRe Celebrates 30 Years!

    By 2016, we'd grown into an international reinsurance company partnering with hundreds of companies around the world. Our long-term commitment of nurturing business relationships and underwriting discipline enabled us to remain financially strong. We also took pride in prompt claim payments, exceptional customer service, financial stability and professional staff.

    We believe our "A" rating from AM Best was a direct result of strategic planning and partnering with sound, like-minded insurance companies around the globe. 

  7. Where Are We Today?

    Shelter Re is a core part of the Shelter Insurance Group focused on spreading the group's property exposure through conservative, diversified, long-term assumed reinsurance partnerships. We currently have partners in over 60 countries with 100+ broker firms. We continue to be a financially sound company focused on providing excellent customer service and prudently and securely placing ceded reinsurance programs for the Shelter Insurance Group.

Our Community Involvement

We understand how important volunteering is to many organizations in our community and we encourage our employees to donate their time and efforts to causes they care about. To make it easier to determine where the need is, we have established a committee called Shelter Cares. This committee meets monthly to go over current volunteer opportunities they are aware of so they can share them with their teams and recruit volunteers. Some of Shelter's ongoing partnerships and supported organizations include:

  • Columbia Public Schools Partners in Education Program
  • Welcome Home - Veterans
  • Heart of Missouri Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA)
  • Show-Me STATE GAMES
  • United Way
  • Ronald McDonald House
  • Food Banks in Our Operating Territories
  • Columbia African American Association Memorial Scholarship Fund

In addition to these volunteer efforts, we also have a Shelter Insurance Foundation that awards a variety of students throughout our parent company's operating territory with $3,000 scholarships. Generally the foundation awards 450 students annually. They also support a number of other educational initiatives within their communities.

Member Organizations