19

L—9a

J. H. KICHABDSON

J. H. Richardson recalled. (No. 9.) 18. Hon. Mr. Millar.] You have heard the statement made by Mr. Liardet in reply to Mr. Hardy, in which it was asked whether the State Accident Insurance Department was part of the combination of insurance companies : Is the State Department a member of the association or not? —No, it is not. 19. You fix the rate yourself without consultation with the association at all? —The position is this: the maximum rates are fixed by Order in Council—by the Government—and I cannot alter them. 1 have power to reduce them to meet competition, but beyond that I am absolutely tied down by the Order in Council. Of course, it would be useless to say that these matters do not form the subject of discussion between the companies doing business and ourselves, but the maximum rates are fixed by Order in Council, and any arrangement I may come to with the companies must be restricted to that. Apart from that if any rate is not reasonable I would not be a party to it. We keep our experience very carefully tabulated. We keep an account of the wages paid and the losses in each trade, and we can always arrive at a ratio between the losses and the wages. Ihen, all we have to do is to load that with the expenses; and if I found that any tale proposed by the companies did not fit in with that, I could not agree with it. 1 cannot, however, exceed the maximum rates. 20. You have to fix the premiums within the maximum?— Yes. 21. Mr. Fraser.] You gave it in evidence that you considered the alteration affected by clause 2, if it became law, would necessitate an increase in the premiums by 12J per cent.? —Yes. 22. Could you raise your present premiums by I2i per cent., and yet keep within your maximum? —I might have to get another Older in Council. When we increased the premiums before by 10 per cent, to meet the provisions of a previous amendment we had to get an Order in Council to enable us to do it. 23. If the Bill in its present form becomes law. is it probable that you would have to apply for increased rates? —Do you mean on current policies? 24. Yes? —Of course, the premiums have to be increased to cover the new liability. I could not say exactly at present what we would do with regard to current policies. We might tell the people that we would cover the risk by increasing the premiums fro rata for the remainder of the term, leaving the extra amount to be collected on such expiry. 25. If the clause amending section 22 of the Act becomes law, would you have to apply to the Government to enable you to increase tin- rates? —Yes. I could not otherwise charge the necessary extra premium. 26. You would have to charge an extra premium to save you from loss?— Yes. 27. Mr. Hardy.] You spoke of the Government fixing the maximum rates. Are you working below the rates?—ln some cases we are, especially in the building trades, which are cut to an unprofitable degree, and therefore I keep out of the building trades as much as possible. If the business comes to us we take it, and it not 1 do not chase it. 28. You would chase after all the good business?— Yes, naturally. 29. And leave the poor companies the bad business?—We do not chase it. 30. What do you mean by " current policies " I —Those that are running. 31. Consequently the current policies must be the early policies?— Yes. 32. And in the event of this legislation passing the current policies would be affected?— Yes, they would have to pay the extra premiums if the assured wished the extra liability to be covered. 33. In agents' commission do you pay up to 25 per cent.?—No, nothing like that. 34. What is the largest sum?—l do not think we pay more than 15 per cent. 35. Is there any additional expenses paid to the men beyond the 15 per cent. ? —No. 36. 1 suppose you sometimes have eases where the men applying for compensation are to all intents and purposes malingerers?—l suppose we do have some cases occasionally. 37. Have you had cases of loss of sight where it has returned?— After the claim has been settled ? 38. Yes? —I cannot say that. Of course, if we had a man who had injured his eyes we should have him examined by an eye specialist. 39. You do not know-of any man who has lost his sight and afterwards regained it?— No. I do not think there is much malingering. There is some, but not much. 40. Your Department has never paid in any ease where a man lost his sight and it was restored afterwards ?—No. 41. lion. Mr. Millar.] You have given a good deal of study to clause 3, about the £5-weekly earnings, and you suggest that the English Act would be preferable?— Yes. 42. If clause 2, providing for £1 medical attendance, were struck out, and clause 3 was made to incorporate the English Act to provide that all manual labour should be paid a maximum of £2 10s. a week, would that increase the premium?—l do not think it would materially increase them. 43. Mr. Hardy.] Do you really fix the rates, or do the underwriters fix them? —They generally discuss such matters with me, but I am governed by the Order in Council, and cannot exceed the rates fixed therein. We are guided by our actual experience. I think we keep our statistics more carefully than any company does, because we have a complete actuarial staff, which the other companies have not got, and, subject to the Order in Council, the rates are raised or lowered according to our actual experience of the cost.

4—l. 9a.