FIRE AND MARINE INSURANCE COMPANIES BILL.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXV, Issue 6048, 18 August 1880, Page 3

FIRE AND MARINE INSURANCE COMPANIES BILL.

TO THE EDITOR OP THE NEW ZEALAND TIMES. Sir,—l have received an affidavit of one Alexander McDonald, of Otago, re an unsettled fire loss, under a policy of the Manchester Insurance Company, formerly doing business in this colony, of which the following is a copy ; “ I, Alexander McDonald, of Milton, in the provincial district of Otago and colony of New Zealand, engineer, do solemnly and sincerely declare—- “ That in the month of April, 1879, I effected an insurance for one hundred pounds on my machinery and stock-in-trade with the Manchester Fire Insurance Company, through their Milton agent, Mr. Capstick, and paid him the premium charged thereon. “ That in the month of June, 1879, a fire occurred at my place of business, and the machinery and stock-in-trade, insured with the said company, were totally destroyed. “That the other insurance company, having an insurance on my building and stock, paid the amount of the policy. “That I prepared and delivered to Mr. Hawkins, the Dunedin agent of the said Manchester Insurance Company, a proof of my claim, but have not yet received payment. “ That I have since delivered to the said company's agent at Auckland a proof of my loss, and be informed my solicitor that the claim would have to be forwarded to England before it could be paid. “That upwards of fourteen months have elapsed since the said fire took place, and I have not yet received payment of my claim, or any promise of payment. “ That my solicitor advises me that it will be necessary for me to sue the company iu England, and that the proceedings will be expensive. “ And I make this solemn declaration, conscientiously believing the same to be true, and by virtue of the Justices of the Peace Act, 1866. “ (Signed) Alexander McDonald. “ Declared at Milton, aforesaid, this sixth day of August, 1880. “ Before me. “ (Signed) Egbert A. Jones, “ A Justice of the Peace in and for the Colony of New Zealand." My reason for wishing the insertion of this document is, that at a special meeting of the Wellington Chamber of Commerce, held on 29th July last, the committee of that institution (not one of whom represents a colonial insurance company) submitted to the members a series of resolutions against the Fire and Marine Insurance Companies Bill (then before Parliament), which were passed. The first resolution ran :—“lt has not been shown that such a measure is required, there being no instance on record of a Fire and Marine Insurance Company doing business in the colony having failed to meet its engage* ments.” When saying a few words at the meeting, I endeavored to show that this resolution was contrary to fact, there being at that time an unsettled fire loss under one of the Manchester Insurance Company’s policies held by the Working' Men’s Club of this city, and proposed, as an amendment, that the resolution be “struck out." Mr. Boardnoan, local manager of the South British Insurance Company, in seconding, gave full particulars of the claim. The amendment was lost, more than half the meeting consisting of the committee of the Chambers. I think, sir, you will agree with me that in the face of even one instance (which was pretty generally known), the resolution, being contrary to fact, should not have passed. It was urged that the mere fact of not paying an undisputed claim more than a year old did not constitute on the part of the Manchester a failure to meet its engagements. By clause 12 of the proposed Bill, “a company shall be deemed to be insolvent within the meaning of this Act upon failure to pay any undisputed claim arising or loss insured against in New Zealand for the space of thirty days after such claim shall fall due, or loss be payable, &c." :As the law at present stands, any foreign company now doing business in New Zealand can withdraw, leaving policies current, and, as in the case of the Manchester, have no representative to settle in the event of losses occurring. X repeat what X said at the Chamber of Commerce meeting, that the only protection sought by the Bill was for the public, and not, as was suggested, for colonial against foreign companies.—Yours, &c., F. Allen, Assistant Manager Colonial Insurance Company.