INSURANCE RATES.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXIII, Issue 85, 1 May 1901, Page 2

INSURANCE RATES.

On the question of insurance rates the Haw era Star favs :—" The action of thi fira iusuranca companies in eo mat-siully increasing the rate of premium?, as set forth in our issue of Saturday, has na'urally given a filip to the almost oxtinct agitation in f ivoi' of the Government taking up the butine's It is not at all & matter for surpris 3 , therefore, that the Fti'ding Chamber t f Commerce has invited other rh tubers to a i s : st it in promoting the movement. We are cot greatly in love with ihe prosp ct of State fire insurarce, but it may be batter to come to that than submit to the further toil which the associated companies are seeking to impose on New Zealanders, if, as it would appear, from information obtained by the Bangitikei Advocate, after all it is not losses in New Z.aland but in other parts of the world which have If d to the demand for higher premiums. The loc si companies, which do the bulk of the insurance work in New Zca'asd, are r it is s*id, satisfied; while tho foreign companies are not, and art able to compel the adhesion of the local companies. Tho Advocate ssys: "We

recently published figures shoeing that the four New Zeahrid insuraoca companies had been paying dividends ranging, from 10 to 20 per cent per annum, and pointed out that in face, of this fact the proposed increase in fire-in-surance rates was not jus'ified. We now learn, on the best authority, that at the meeting cf underwriter these four c jmpaniijS strenuously oppwtdthe increase, but were, out-vot.d by the 23 foi eign companies. F6r reasons connected with insurance business in other couHtri s, the New Zealand companies cannot bre:>.k away from tbe united tariff. They are, however, satisfied with the volume of business they do in this colony, and it is alleged that. th<» rsason why the other compuiii e forced the increase was because the volume of their business here is less." We have confidence that oar contemporary would not publish tbe statement if not satisfied of its accuracy, atid if accurate then the inference is the increase is not ne for the conduct of safe business in the colony.