Our history

All great things of note are born from small humble beginnings

We continue to help people to live financially confident lives

Our purpose since 1843 is to help individuals and families to live with financial confidence by protecting their income while they are working and maximising it when they stop.

This still remains at the very heart of LV= and is the reason we exist.

Our history

We were founded almost two centuries ago

Back in 1843, Liverpool was a tale of two cities. Host to 40% of the world’s trade it also had areas of great poverty and destitution.

For many decades we were most commonly associated with what was known as the ‘penny policy’ – life insurance at its simplest. Door-to-door agents would collect these penny premiums, allowing people to leave a little something behind to cover the costs of a decent funeral.
Whilst we now offer very different products, the nature of what we do hasn’t really changed since the company began all that time ago – we’re still helping individuals and families to protect and provide for what’s important to them. We're sure our founder, William Fenton, would be proud of his legacy.

Back in time

Take a look at where our offices have been throughout the years

1843 - The first LV= office building

1868 - Head office, Islington Liverpool

1930 - Head office moves to London

1996 - LV= moves to Bournemouth

William Fenton 1843

In 1843 on 37 Blake Street, Liverpool William Fenton, a 36 year old customs officer and a group of his friends formed ‘The Liverpool Independent Legal Victoria Burial Society’.

Head office, Islington, Liverpool

The expansion to new Liverpool offices, an old boarding house at 23 Islington was purchased for £2,000, where William Fenton was provided with free residence, coal and taxes.

Head office moves to London

In 1930 The grand offices of Victoria House in Bloomsbury Square, London became the head office where the staff looked after over 13 million policies. In 1970 the World Snooker Championships were staged at our grand head office.

LV= moves to Bournemouth

Following the acquisition of the Frizzell Group, LV= moved out of London and into the Frizzell campus of offices in Bournemouth, launching into a whole new market – general insurance (until 31 December 2019 when it was sold to Allianz Holding plc).

Our locations

Bournemouth

Vibrant and full of variety, our head office is based in Bournemouth.

Exeter

With a picture-perfect landscape and a lively culture, Exeter is a great place to live and work.

Hitchin

Our Hitchin office is based in the town centre and surrounded by beautiful parkland and river.

Financial Times best employers UK 2026

We’re delighted that LV= has been included in the Financial Times Best Employers 2026 list for a second year. Over 20,000 employees across the UK were independently surveyed to create these rankings.