THG 2019 Proxy Statement

THE HANOVER INSURANCE GROUP 2019 PROXY STATEMENT 2 If you are a registered shareholder (that is, if you hold stock certificates directly in your name), you may vote via the Internet in accordance with the instructions set forth in the Notice. If you have requested a paper copy of the proxy materials, you may vote by mail, via the Internet, or via the toll-free number in accordance with the instructions set forth on the proxy card. The shares of Common Stock represented by your proxy will be voted as you directed, or, if the proxy card is signed, dated and returned without instructions, in accordance with the Board’s recommendations as set forth in this Proxy Statement. The proxy also confers discretionary authority with respect to any other proposals that may properly be brought before the Annual Meeting. As of the date of this Proxy Statement, neither the Board nor management is aware of any other matters to be presented for action at the Annual Meeting. However, if any other matters properly come before the Annual Meeting, then the proxies solicited hereby will be voted in accordance with the recommendations of the Board. Can I change my vote after I submit my proxy? Yes. Any registered shareholder giving a proxy may revoke it at any time before it is exercised by delivering written notice thereof to the Company’s Corporate Secretary, The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc., 440 Lincoln Street, Worcester, MA 01653. If you are a beneficial owner of shares held in street name, you may revoke or change your voting instructions prior to the Meeting by timely instructing your broker, trustee or nominee. Any shareholder of record attending the Annual Meeting may vote in person regardless of whether or not the shareholder previously delivered a proxy. Shares held beneficially in street name may be voted in person only if you obtain and bring to the Meeting a legal proxy from the broker, trustee or nominee that holds your shares giving you the right to vote the shares. Presence at the Annual Meeting by a shareholder who has submitted a proxy, however, does not in itself revoke a submitted proxy. What vote is required to approve each item, and how are abstentions and broker non-votes treated? Proposal Vote Required Effect of Broker Non-Votes and Abstentions 1. Election of a director nominee The affirmative vote of a majority of the votes properly cast (in person or by proxy). For purposes of electing directors, “the affirmative vote of a majority of the votes cast” means that the number of votes cast “for” a director must exceed the number of votes cast “against” that director. Broker non-votes and abstentions, because they are not votes cast, are not counted for this proposal and will have no effect on the outcome. 2. Advisory vote on executive compensation The affirmative vote of a majority of the votes properly cast (in person or by proxy). Broker non-votes and abstentions, because they are not votes cast, are not counted for this proposal and will have no effect on the outcome. 3. Ratification of the appointment of PwC to serve as the Company’s independent, registered public accounting firm for 2019 The affirmative vote of a majority of the votes properly cast (in person or by proxy). Abstentions, because they are not votes cast, will not be counted and will have no effect on the outcome. However, banks and brokers that have not received voting instructions from their clients may vote their clients’ shares on this proposal. What happens if a director nominee is not elected at the Annual Meeting? If a nominee who is currently serving as a director is not re-elected at the Annual Meeting, then under Delaware law, the director would continue to serve on the Board as a “holdover director.” However, under our by-laws, any director who is nominated but fails to be re-elected is required to promptly tender his or her resignation to the Board, effective at the end of his or her current term. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (the “ NCGC ”) will make a recommendation to the Board on whether to accept or reject the resignation, or whether other action should be taken. In making their determinations, the NCGC and the Board may consider any factors deemed relevant. The Board will act on the NCGC’s recommendation and publicly disclose its decision and the rationale behind it within 90 days from the date of the certification of the election results. The director who tenders his or her resignation will not vote on the NCGC’s recommendation or the Board’s decision. How do participants in The Hanover Insurance Group Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the “ESPP”) vote their shares? ESPP participants who retain their issued shares are considered to hold such shares in “street name” in a brokerage account. Such shares may be voted like other “street name” holders. The brokerage firm or nominee will forward ESPP participants the Notice and/or a printed copy of the proxy materials, together with voting instructions. ESPP participants’ voting instructions are kept confidential by the administrator of the ESPP. Who can attend the Annual Meeting? The Meeting is open to all THG shareholders of record as of the Record Date and to invited guests of the Board. Individuals who hold shares in “street name” may be required to provide a brokerage account statement or some other proof of their share ownership as of the Record Date.