DAIRY FACTORY INSURANCE

Taranaki Daily News, 25 July 1930, Page 10

DAIRY FACTORY INSURANCE

SOME POLICIES NOT RENEWED. EXPLANATION OF POSITION. Referring to a statement in the House of Representatives by Mr. 11. G. Dickie that dairy companies in Taranaki wore being notified that their insurance policies on wooden buildings would not be renewed, and that their bankers had been notified of the position, secretaries of dairy companies in New Plymouth stated that they had not received official notice of the department’s intentions. It was pointed out, however, that there were not many wooden factories left in Taranaki, not more than five or six on the northern side of Stratford, and probably about 10 on the southern side. Most of the old wooden buildings had x been replaced by brick or concrete structures. The premiums in these cases were very low. Mr. S. O. Jones, manager in New Plymouth for the State Fire Office, said he was not in a position to make a statement, but Mr. A. S. Clark, New Plymouth manager of the New Zealand Insurance Company, explained the position. He said: “In view of the heavy losses sustained by insurance companies on wooden dairy factories during the past few years throughout New Zealand, an increase in the fire insurance rates has recently taken place. There are not a great number of wooden factories ramaiiiing in Taranaki, for all replacements and additions in recent years have been in concrete or brick, as in addition to minimising the danger from fire the insurance rates on concrete buildings are very much less than those of wood. “Certain companies are declining to insure wooden factories, and in some cases policies 'are being allowed to lapse as they fall due. However, in no instance has any dairy factory been inconvenienced or its finance affected,- as stated by Mr. Dickie, for most of the leading insurance companies are still prepared to accept the business where the property is in a reasonably good state of repair, and no dairy factory has been unable to secure reasonable cover over its property.”