Erie Insurance serves customers in 12 states and the District of Columbia and employs more than 6,500 people in Erie and regional offices.
- Erie Insurance CEO Tim Necastro has announced his retirement at the end of the year.
- Under his leadership, the company experienced significant growth in revenues, employment and policies.
- The company’s board of directors will begin an immediate search for his successor.
Necastro, 65, plans to step down at the end of the year.
Erie Insurance spokesman Matthew Cummings said the company’s board of directors will immediately begin the process of identifying his successor.
A graduate of Gannon University and a trained accountant, Necastro was named in 2016 to replace Terrence Cavanaugh, the only outsider to lead the 100-year-old company.
Erie Insurance, which ranks as Erie County’s largest employer, has been a member of the Fortune 500 for more than 20 years, most recently ranking as the nation’s 323rd largest company by revenue.
Under Necastro’s leadership, the company’s premiums grew to approximately $13 billion and more than 7 million policies.
Erie Insurance also raised its profile during that time, winning several industry awards and being named to the S&P 500 index in 2024. In April of 2025, NeCastro was asked to ring the opening bell on the Nasdaq, in honor of the company’s 100th anniversary.
Over the past decade, the company expanded its workforce in Erie, opening a $147 million Thomas B. Built the Hagen Building and began a major renovation of the F.W. Hurt Perry Square Building.
The company also faced a storm last summer when a network security incident caused a disruption in computerized operations.
Necastro, who is known for giving gifts of homemade pizzelle for the holidays, made a huge batch of meatballs to help feed those who were working on the problem.
Necastro has taken on a role as a community leader.
Outside the company, Necastro may be best remembered for the leadership role he played in the Erie community.
Tom Hagen, chairman of the company’s board of directors, introduced Necastro as the company’s new leader 10 years ago in what he called a “thorough and thoughtful process.”
Within a few months, Hagen talked to him about expanding his role, Necastro said in a recent interview with the Erie Times-News.
“I remember Mr. Hagen telling me that your role is not just to run the company. It’s to (help) the company get the community out of the gutter.”
“He said, ‘What’s the purpose of being the big kid on the block if you can’t help your community?'” Necastro said.
The expanded job description prompted NeCastro and Erie Insurance to launch the Erie Downtown Development Corp., which has invested $150 million in downtown development. It also added Necastro to the role of chairman of Infinity Arri’s board of managers. Infinite Erie was designed as a playbook for Erie community investment priorities to launch in 2022.
Along with his work on local revitalization efforts, Necastro and his wife, Lisa Necastro, are also strong supporters of charitable causes. He led the capital campaign to renovate and expand the Experience Children’s Museum in 2023, helping raise $18.5 million for the project. He serves as co-chair for United Way of Erie County’s Uniting for Education Endowment campaign to support the organization’s community school model.
“Tim has led the organization with extraordinary kindness and humility,” Hagen said in a statement. “He has been a consistent model for ERIE’s values – always putting people and service first. This is more than just a leadership change – it marks the closing of a defining chapter in our company’s story.”
Hagen added: “In addition to his leadership at Erie, Tim has been a tireless advocate for our community. His work as founding president of the Erie Downtown Development Corporation has brought millions of dollars of investment to the revitalization of our downtown, and his dedication to other organizations and initiatives across our city reflects his deep belief in service that extends beyond our company.”
In a recent interview, Necastro said that his work with community organizations will continue after his retirement.
In that interview, he said, “I want to be involved in this community until the day I die. I’m never resigning from that role.”
A graduate of Cathedral Preparatory School, Necastro worked as a finance director for the accounting firm Ernst & Young and the Erie-based Plastec Group.
He joined Erie Insurance in 1996 and has held senior leadership roles in internal audit, finance, product and policy services, and regional field operations.
He reflected on his Erie Insurance career in a statement.
“Erie Insurance has shaped not only my career, but my life,” he said. “I have been fortunate to work with people who care deeply about each other, about our customers, and about the communities we serve. While this chapter is coming to a close, my commitment to ERIE and this community is not ending.”
“I’m grateful for the opportunity to continue serving in new ways and to stay connected to the place and people that mean so much to me.”
Contact Jim Martin jmartin@timesnews.com.
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