FIRE INSURANCE RATES.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1514, 7 March 1901, Page 37

FIRE INSURANCE RATES.

Insurance men throughout the colony are concerned at the fact that the fire losses during the first two months of this year to companies doing; business in New Zealand have reached the unprecedented sum of £139,270. “Why, it’s the worst thing I’ve ever known in the whole of my career in New Zealand,” said a well-known insurance manager, talking on the sth to a representative of the “New Zealand Times” on the subject. “The figures for the whole of last- year,” said he, by way of illustration, “came to only £250,000. 'lt is quite true that the losses for the year before amounted to £300,000, but eken this is a trifling ratio as 1 compared with £139,000 odd for only two months.” “How do you account for such a ;loss ?’’ asked the “Times” representative;’“lncendiarism, without a doubt,” was the prompt reply—“that is to say, a very large proportion of it is due to incendiarism. It only shows, that despite all the talk about prosperity, there must be something rotten in the community when this "sort of thing is going on.” By far the' larger number of the fires occurring during the two months in question took place in country towns in the North Island, from which those concerned in insurance; business infer that times are fairly good in the South Island, while the prosperity of the North Island is more apparent than real. This is the deduction of the insurance manager referred to. Tn. prove this, he pointed out that in times of great prosperity, fires) are few in number, “For instance,” said he. “in. the time of the big mining boom in Auckland, there were very few fires.” Another singular fact is that for tht» last three years, the experience of the insurance companies has _ been against brick as contrasted with wood. The outbreaks in buildings of brick have been much more numerous than in those of wood. Since the premiums for brick are lower than those for wood, it will be seen that the companies have* thus lost proportionately. In face, of these facts, the recent proposal for the increase of insurance rates assumes a new significance, and though the authorities decline to say anything definite on the matter, more will probably be heard of it in the near future.