William Thomas Thomson FRSE FFA (1813–1883) was a 19th-century Scottish actuary who was manager of the Standard Life Assurance Company 1834 to 1878 and changed the face of insurance through use of mortality rates. His use of actuarial tables became common practice across the globe in the field of life insurance.

Personal life

Edinburgh - Standard Life Investments - panoramio

He was born on 25 February 1813, in the parish of St Andrews, in Edinburgh. He appears in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

around 1833 as an accountant living at 57 Northumberland Street in the Second New Town. In 1839 he married Christian Anne Seaman, and by 1842 he was living with his family in a suite above the company offices at 3 George Street. Around 1860 he moved to a magnificent townhouse at 41 Moray Place on the

Moray Estate The Moray Estate in Edinburgh was an exclusive early 19th century building venture attaching the west side of Edinburgh's New Town. Built on an awkward and steeply sloping site, it has been described as a masterpiece of urban planning. Back ...

in Edinburgh's fashionable West End, but still retained his suite at George Street.

Career

In 1834 he joined Standard Life Assurance in

as their Secretary and by 1837 found himself in charge as manager of the company, taking over from his predecessor James Auchinleck Cheyne. Through both positions, Thomson had a strong philosophy of expansion; largely through the acquisition of rival companies. These included Commercial Assurance and Victoria, Legal & General. He worked closely with

Robert Christison Sir Robert Christison, 1st Baronet, (18 July 1797 – 27 January 1882) was a Scottish toxicologist and physician who served as president of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (1838–40 and 1846-8) and as president of the British ...

(as medical advisor) to create tables of life expectancy based on life styles. The company rewarded customers who had a "standard life" (normal life) whilst charging others a higher premium (or refusing them insurance). Once he was appointed manager, his plans for expansion focused on fostering shareholder and customer loyalty, reviving business prospects. In 1845 he began venturing into foreign expansion and created a sister company: the Colonial Life Assurance Company, who shared the George Street head office. They had branch offices in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

Tobago Tobago () is an List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, island and Regions and municipalities of Trinidad and Tobago, ward within the Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located northeast of the larger island of Trini ...

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

, Canada, India,

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

, China, South Africa and Germany. In 1849 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. His proposer was John Graham MacDonald Burt. Additionally, Thomson was a founding member of the

Institute of Actuaries The Institute of Actuaries was one of the two professional bodies which represented actuaries in the United Kingdom. The institute was based in England, while the other body, the Faculty of Actuaries, was based in Scotland. While the Institute an ...

in 1848, and the Faculty of Actuaries in Scotland in 1856. He retired in 1878 and passed his management role to his son,

Spencer Campbell Thomson Spencer Campbell Thomson FRSE FFA (1842–1931) was a Scottish actuary and influential businessman. He introduced statistical mortality rates into life insurance. Personal life Spencer Thomson was born on 16 October 1842, the son of Willi ...

. Thomson died in Edinburgh in 1883.

Publications

*''Actuarial Table'' (1853) *''Decimal Coinage'' (1854) *''Notes on the Pecuniary Interests of Heirs of Entail''

References

1813 births 1883 deaths Businesspeople from Edinburgh Actuaries Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh {{Scotland-bio-stub