[9] In 1912, the farmers' union in Lincolnshire approached the businesses for advice about forming a mutual insurance company, and were advised to join existing enterprise.

An early director was Sir Basil Brooke; he went on to be Prime Minister of Northern Ireland[8] and revived the Ulster Volunteer Force as a paramilitary organisation.

[9] In the 1960s, NFU Mutual's assets reached £50m, but there was a significant outbreak of foot and mouth disease on UK farms in 1967.

[9] In July 1998 the Board put before the members proposals to change the Articles to give the Mutual freedom to insure anyone, irrespective of profession or occupation.

[9] In the late 1990s, the demutualisation of NFU Mutual was explored by director John Murray[12] who initially approached five venture capitalists in the hope of launching a bid.

[18] That year the Annual report stated "A Principal Risk and Uncertainty is that NFU Mutual's customer base changes substantially beyond expectations.

[22] In the same year, NFU Mutual's Claims Validation Technical Manager David Phillips became chair of the General Insurance Fraud Committee of the ABI.

[25] The business apologised in 2023 to a third party couple whose garden and swimming pool had been destroyed by a member of NFU Mutual and their buffalo herd.

[27] In 2024 the business apologised to a retired police officer, who was a third party to its policyholder, for making no progress in 2 year period with a subsidence claim for around £100,000 of damage.

[33] In 2022, the Financial Reporting Council asked about declarations regarding its exposure to Business Interruption claims because of requirements of section 21 ‘Provisions and Contingencies’ of FRS 102s.

[36] As NFU Mutual has no shareholders, a proportion of its profits, if any, are returned to policyholder members in the form of an adjustment on quoted premiums of renewing customers.

[41] As of Spring 2023, it consisted of the following people: Non-executive directors are: The NFUM's current Group Head of Legal and Company Secretary is Jim Creechan.

NFU Mutual responded saying: "We avoid areas we consider harmful such as predatory lenders, certain munitions, and climate-unfriendly companies with no plans to help decarbonisation.

[62] NFU Mutual sell life insurance products including term assurance, critical illness, and income protection through AIG.

[63] The business also offers various investment and pension products, including ISAs and With-Profit funds, and sells financial advice and inheritance tax planning.

[69] NFU Mutual responded saying the warehouses would create 150 jobs that will benefit the local economy and will add much-needed high-quality space to the area.

[70] In April 2022 NFU Mutual's management allocated in excess of a further £20 million of members' funds to this speculative investment with its commercial partner Tungsten.

[75] In July 2022, NFU Mutual sold eight warehouses to American-based investment firm Barings LLC for £234 million[76] and the negotiations were described as "contentious" when the deal completed in 2023.

[96] The foundation aims to have zero avoidable deaths on farms and runs an annual Mind Your Head campaign concerning mental health issues.

[97] In 2020, NFU Mutual set up a fund for its agency offices to use in order to distribute money to charities in their local communities.

[101] In October 2022, the business released research indicating their customers had "put a hold on their [investment] plans while ... assessing uncertainty overshadowing" them.

NFU Mutual lost the case and was ordered by Mr Justice Holgate to pay £100,000 in legal costs on top of the damage.

[111] NFU Mutual sold policies which were the subject of examination in the Financial Conduct Authority test case on business interruption payments during COVID.

[112] In 2022 (following the handing down of the UK Supreme Court decision in the FCA test case), plans to bring proceedings in a group action against NFU Mutual with Penningtons Manches Cooper LLP[113] acting as solicitors were announced.

[116] It has also come to light that NFU Mutual was already, in 2023, defending another class action associated with these kinds of liabilities which was filed in the court and served on them before the financial year end of 2023.

[117] In a Chartered Institute of Insurance podcast at the beginning of the pandemic in May 2020, Nick Turner (at the time sales and agency director, and subsequently CEO) stated that the company would "have to work to renew trust with certain customers", but that this would be "challenging".

[121] In April 2020, an NFU Mutual customer questioned the insurer's position on business interruption in evidence to the House of Commons Treasury Select Committee.

"[128][129] In 2011, the issue of excessive pay has received negative attention, with the Insurance Times quoting an observer as saying: "Only two words come to mind – and they are 'snout' and 'trough'.

[130] In 2013, a director of NFU Mutual, David Anderson, was scrutinised for his role as chief executive of the troubled Co-operative Bank during its financial collapse[131] which had a capital short fall of £1.5bn.

NFU Mutual's board left Anderson in place, going further and issuing a statement saying they benefited from his kind of advice and 'had no plans to review his appointment'.