The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1898-05-27
$4I,22I PAID IN.
That Amount of Money Turned
Into State Treasury
By the Department of InSur-
ance the Past Year.
MIR. M'NALL'S REPORT.
He Gives Much Credit to Gov
ernOr Leedy
For His Support in Enforcing
the Law.
MIR. M'NALL'S REPORT.

81, 1897, was made public today. The
report will be issued in about two
weeks.
The Introductory of Superintendent
McNal is lengthy, and contains COM
plete resume Of the litigation between
the insurance department and insur-
ance companies during the year 1897.
He starts out by quoting the statutes
and decisions defining the power of
superintendent of insurance, and gives
snort history of the suits filed against
him by insurance companies in the or
der they were instituted. A history of
the Clarkson Rating Bureau litigation
is also given.
Superintendent McNau follows the
chapter of Litigation with one on the
Valued Policy Law" and reviews his
efforts for the enforcement of this law.
He states that he is emphatically in ia
Vor of the law remaining on the stat
ute books of the state, and in support of
this opinion says:
What would the people in any COM
munity in this state say if, on the first
OF the month, an individuals note at
the bank, his store bill, butchers bill,
or any other bill, matured, and he
would go through the form of appoint
ing an adjuSter to go and adjust the
matter, who would say: L will pay you
SeVenty-fVe cents on the dollar, and if
you do not accept this amount you can
go into court and litigate the matter.
BY the time you pay attorneys fees
and costs you will be out more money
than I am offering you Every man in
this state would say that proceedings
of this kind were absolutely dishonest;
but insurance companies appoint ad-
JuSterS, send them out to adjust losses
under the valued-policy law of this
state, where there is a total loss and
no question as to the amount due, and
use the above tactics. In other words,
they attempt to make respectable in
business matters what the people of
Kansas know to be disreputable and
dishonest. At the same time, possibly,
the insurance adjusters should not be
blamed so much as the insurance COM
panes. They are required to do GER
tain things in the adjustment of losses
that the principal himself would
not do; they are required to
do it in order to hold their
jobs. Adjusters are required to earn
their salaries from the assured in seal
ing down their losses. In addition, they
ar ereQuired to earn their expenses by
the methods above referred to. Outside
of all this they are also required to earn
money for the companies. They are not
instructed to scale the losses down pro-
viding it is right to do so, but they oc-
cupy the position with the companies
that the old gentleman exemplified
when he sent his son out in the world
to make a living. He told him to make
money-honestly if he could, but under
any circumstances to make money!
Continuing he says:
THE superintendent of insurance,
along these lines, as we'll as along the
lilies 10 1lIG insurance COM
panieS and the amount they owe to the
people of this state, has attempted and
is attempting at this time, and proposes
while he remains in office, to compel the
insurance companies to pay their honest
losses and meet their honest obligations
or retire from the state, and for doing
this have been held up to public ridi-
cule by the moulders of public opinion,
by the leading Republican papers of
this state, and, in addition by the only
Republican newspaper, so styled, pub
lished in Kansas City, Mo. Day after
day, week after week, and month after
month these aforesaid newspapers,
when a contest would arise between
foreign insurance corporations on one
side and the rights and interests of the
people Of Kansas upon the other side,
have invariably, with few exceptions,
rushed to the aid and assistance of the
insurance corporations.
Il suppose the reason why such a
large number of Republican newspaper
in different parts of the state assailed
the department is because they were
instructed to from other sources-a
good deal upon the same theory that
they go to the express office and obtain
supplements for their papers without
knowing the contents of same, without
ever having ordered them from any
person, and all the expense there is to
them is the express upon the same, and
they are not fully Informed as to what
their own views are upon any given
subject until they open the package and
conformity Herewith, the editors of the
aforesaid Republican newspapers are
supposed to write an editorial in har-
mony with the views expressed in the
supplements
Referring to the eastern insurance
journals superintendent McNan pays
his respects as follows:
1T is generally understood in this day
and age that the superintendent of in
surance who receives the greatest laud-
atoms from the alleged insurance press
is the superintendent who permits the
insurance companies to run his depart
ment If the superintendent of insur-
ance in any state insists upon insurance
companies complying with the law-and
especially the Valued Policy Law of
the state-he is maligned, traduced and
yilified by the so-called insurance press. |
ITO be sure it does not work a hardship
to any of the superintendents: do not
SD pgfates Who read any one of the afore-
said insurance journals. All the insurance
list. and if they have been successful from
a financial standpoint during the brief
milking process which they have applied
to the insurance companies.
The receipts of the department for the
year are shown in the report to have been
as follows:
For filing annual statements 50 9lo 90 90
Eor taxes - ~ S9
For court and MISCELLANEOUS fees. 2o4- o.
For firemen's fund for 1896. 16, 239 80
Appropriated by chapter AZ. laws
Collected under authority OF chap n'4-O-OO
ter AZ, laws 1897 Neutrality-suspicious.. 5,S20.S9 !
Of the above amount S4i. 221. 46 was COW
cred into the state treasury, as provided
by law; and $50. 40 Is was disbursed to
ella tons.
In conclusion. Superintendent NcNan
I'm submitting this report of the busi-