LIFE INSURANCE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 302, 16 May 1911, Page 5

LIFE INSURANCE.

A WOMAN'S COMPLAINT. :.?| 1 MR. T. K. TAIu)R ADVOCATES ,\1 STATE MONOPOLY. . § Christchurch, Saturday.'- '£ The Mayor (Mr. T. E. Taylor, M.P,)|| told a Press representative to-day th*|f'J there had been brought under his notieqi|| a case which confirmed his opinion thatS the life insurance business should be JL3 State monopoly. -^j He said that in the House of Repreienr.jl uitives last session there had been Ami cushions on lite insurance contracts, and|*j it was alleged that a great deal of d»»J§ ception had been practised, the pr«ri miums being out of all proportion to tutiS financial results when the policies U>*l|i tiired. That was stated to be spedfdjwg marked in connection with certain polios eies that were tontined. Since the ■£*« sion he had heard of complaints from <W*Ji fcrent people who had insured years agojj as to the results they received from th*w| policies This morning a woman, .jtfcfi| wife of .t working man, waited upon li-RmJ and stated that she had taken out *M policy in 181 Hi. She was then employe™ in domestic service, and she was given ten understand that she would have to ttsM Od a week until she was thirty-five ycalgfl of age, on Uie understanding that *£«| would receive £24 when the policy MMm tured. The policy had now matured, aMM she was offered only £l2 in settlements after having paid to the company £ma 10s, £7 10s mor>- than the company nffis offered to give. The company undertook a contingent liability of £24 in thjfi event of her death during the curreWJjH of the policy. She tvas confident, nojßjj ever, that only the sum of £24 was menjfl tioned to Iter when she was induced tjM insure as the sum she would reoelliS when the policy matured. The pOJHM was not issued to her until a long tiMM after her proposal had been accepted, jgj Xo doubt, Mr. Taylor said, the (CffljH pany would make a more or less feasJtflj defence of the transaction, hut tifl| whole thing only confirmed the^optawH he had expressed during last session t)«fl the time was ripe in New Zcakrad'.mH making life insurance a State monoptSH The competitive conditions under ,wh||| it. was carried on in the DominionlM present led to vague and P eTOl P*'4H honest promises being made in order?JH secure business; and the people won 'dl|| great gainers, either by rednced „,WM miums or increased bonuses, if the tiH mendous cost of acquiring new btttfnvH now borne by different offices, fought one another for it, was saved JM establishing a State monopoly. Hej3H vised the woman to accept the £l2 flfH ed and to make the best of a bad b&rgljS otherwise she might find herself ''yjM position of the two litigants who trltgM settle the question of the ownereMfflH an oyster. Each litigant got a »H»B3jB the oyster went to the lawyer. . ;|jjn