Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1896-03-27
FIRE INSURANCE RATES.
BrattlebOrO Losses for 10 Years.

Companies Have Not suffered Here---
Our Complete and Expensive Equip
ment for Fire observation-disclosures
wrong In the Way Rates Are IncreRs-
ed under these Local Conditions.
Editor of the Ph1nir: Dear SRI be-
lieye the time has come when the matter of
fire insurance should be more thoroughly
looked into by the public, that insurance
rates should be assessed according to the
risk and protection onlevery piece of prop
erty insured in city, village and town, and
that an effort should be made to secure
lower and more equitable rates, to which
we are justly entitled. Something is
wrong, radically wrong, in the matter of
fire Insurance. Having those things in
mind l respectfully submit, through the
columns of The Phoenix, the following
suggestions and tables for the considera-
ton of the public-and the insurance peo-
pie also.
First of all we should have valued pol
icy law. No insurance agent should take
a risk on personal property until he has
personally examined the property. The
Insurance should not be for more than two
thirds of the value of the property. All
rates should be assessed according to the
risk-if a good risk, low rate; il fair
risk, a medium rate; if hazardous risk, a
high rate, and all risks should be looked
after by the agents placing them.
Today you can go into any insurance
office and place almost any amount of in
surance on household furniture or personal
property. To illustrate this, | was in an
Insurance office a few years ago and
young man, recently married, came in to
have some insurance placed on his house
L 1 A ,V1a1,O in
auired the agent. 81 hardly know" was
the reply. "Please give me list of arti-
cless," which was given. SIS that alp"
eyes" "Have you sewing machine?"
''No, but when Mr.. So and SO completes
one he is experimenting with | expect to
have one 'When will that be?" 81
don't know" you had better add it to
the list; but of course if you should get
burned out you would get no pay, but it
will save your adding it to the policy later
on "All right, put it in" That man
was not only paying premium on some
thing he did not own, but on something
that did not exist, and the agent no doubt
smiled and waited for the next victim.
The co-insurance clause attached to poll
cies today is all wrong Instead of being
| so per cent it should not be over 80 per
cent. This, added to the previous sugges-
tions, would do more to reduce fire losses
than all the fire marshals the legislature
will ever be likely to appoint. The agents
should be the fire marshals and look after
| the risks.
The companies complain about losses.
Now l would ask them caudidly if, during
all these hard times, when manufacturing
industries, business men and laborers have
had to economic and cut down expenses
to get along, have the fire insurance COM
panies reduced the salaries of their officers,
or their agents commissions, or in any way
economical so as to make the cost of fire
insurance less? l ask for information.
Now as to the facts that the companies
have been meeting with heavy losses in
Vermont the following table of premiums
received and losses paid in the past 10
| years will show: