Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1898-10-26

insurance companies for their compensa-
tion a. insurance commissioners. Their
60 per cent amounted last year to $l094
40, or an addition of $2047 20 to each of
their salaries OF $500. The bill in uues-
ton limits the expense of this department
to $4,000 annually and necessary official
travelling expenses, which ere allowed by
the present law the same.
No business is more closely allied to
every other kind OF business than in
surance, tor its positive necessity
to all kinds of business. Whatever
tends to increase or decrease, its cost d.
rectly affects every kind OF business, be-
| cause it is a direct tax upon it, espe tally
upon property and partially upon life.
Last year insurance companies, legally
doing business in Vermont, wrote new in
surance in the sum of $74 gu, 877, taking
from our people $4,000, 202 in premiums.
For the privilege of dong this they paid
into the state treasury $6S24 in licenses
and fees, and in corporation taxes about
100000 IL not this department entitled
to more close personal supervision than it
now has The protection of the people Of
this state demands it, and that the office be
in the hands Of some expert who knows
the details of the business. 1t should not
be subject to the changes which occur in
the other offices and liable to be given to
men who know nothing whatever OF the
business
In Brattleboro, Bellows Falls, Burling-
ton and Winooski alone, there is annually
written over So, 800, 900 fire insurance by
companies which never pay dollar into the
state treasury, and they take for this from the
state premiums amounting to $33, 900 an
nually The same is true in other parts of
the state, perhaps in smaller degree. Many
companies of little reliability take premi-
ums Of our citizens, in every form of insur-
ance, and our people never find they are
being duped until the losses come. Com
panies who bear the burdens of taxation
should be protected from this class, AS we'll
as the citizens.
Supervision that supervises would make
"a repetition of the experience had a few
years ago with the Rutland Fire Insurance
company Of Rutland improbable,if not i'm
possible. A company organized under
our laws, doing business here and in other
: states with no assets except worthless
western secuIitles, after a few years of
j, business, failed, leaving many claimants
here and elsewhere, and our state reputa-
ton tor supervision of its own companies
materially weakened. To quote similar il
Illustrations in life insurance, the Bay State
Beneficiary Association, and the Massachu.
sets Benefit Life, two assessment organi-
cations which failed recently, left many
certificate holders in our state and many
death claims unpaid. which with an insur
ance expert at the head OF the department.
employing his whole time in looking aftel
e the interests OF our citizens, might have re-
suited less disastrously.
Fire insurance rates are ineuuitable OF
the same classes of hazard and according
e to the experience of fires in the differen
localities in this state. An official exper
in his business should WELD an importan
influence toward improving this, standin,
! impartially between the companies and th,
< citizens as a whole.
f statistics regarding fires, their origin
n classes, causes and localities, properly tab
ulated are furnished by the departments o
other states to the people and to the insur
e ance companies. These are of great as
: sistance in securing equitable rates, callins
q the attention Of citizens to the great ant
: unne sessary drain upon the commonwealth
where the drain is, what it consists in, an,
(, where the fire departments are inadequate
q 1t is understood this has material effec
upon the fire loss by the attention givel
particular localities, more care exercised
and improvements made. The present Law
r remunerates the commissioners enough 70
g this work but they have never done it Fou
j. years ago this was started by private enter
! prise, and at private expense, and ha
been so continued until now, continual
calling attention through the public pres
to the serious drain upon our resources
This the commissioners have echoed heart
n lily by copying into their annual repor
to the governor, and Improvement is al
ready seen.
, For Is years previous to 1896 Vernon
4 has been an uproftable field and Insurance.
rates correspondingly high. In no yea
since 1895 has the waste been one-hal
what it was that year, and each year it la
3 been less than in any year for Is years
t These statistics should be continued, al,
every influence used to get people t,
improve their risks and protection.
The income to the state treasury can b.
much increased from this department il
future years, if this bill becomes law, con
sequent upon the personal attention to thu
l nee DIS of both the public and the com
panies, looking closer after those compan
les who avoid their share of public burdens
1t has been suggested by eminent authority
that it might be wise to transfer the over
|sigbt OF the two per cent corporation tai
: paid by insurance companies to this depart
, ment, because of the closer knowledge
commissioner would have over the bust
ness of the companies.
Equally good authority suggests adding
5 to the commissioners duties some of those
which in other states fall to fire marshal
, the retiring governor having wisely out.
lined the need OF such an official.
Important advancement is possible i
; this bill becomes law, with rig ht officia
, at its head. 1t is directly in line of econ.
omy in present expense as well as prospec
!. tive improvement in service. 1t is righ
it should pass, and good results will surel,
be apparent in the next decade.
L. S. HAYES.