The Opelousas courier., 1904-02-13
EXTRACT FROM THE ADDRESS OF
INSURANCE COMMISSIONER COLE
Before State Convention Of Business
Men at jackson, Miss,

| uGQS VI AOl AAP dAS EE
than the insurance, unless it be the educa-
tional department., for more people are d.
rectIy interested In insurance than In any
other business. 1t Is a mistaken idea that
only the person with property to insure Is
interested in fire Insurance., and the rates
charged therefor. Every fire destroys val
ues-takes that amount from the wealth
Of the country and generally from the as
sessment rolls Of State, County and Town,
thereby more or less affecting every citizen.
Besides, insurance has become an absolute
necessity to the business man, and its cost
enters us surely into the selling price OF his
goods and wares as do other taxes, rents,
clerk hire a1A transportation charges, thus
directly resching his every customer. But
the facts &te well known to this intelligent
body, and the thing to be determined here
is what can be done to improve conditions
and rates in this state. 1 have been re-
Quested to lead in discussing the topic,
protection to Property From Fire Losses"
ana l want to say that when we have cor
rcctly solved this problem we will have
found the key to the whole situation and
low rate and every other desired better
ment will follow as certainly as effect fol
lows cause.
The Cause Of Fire.
1.-The fire waste Of this country amounts
to more than $3.50, OOO, 900 per mum and
it is known that more than 90 per cent OF
all fires start from preventable causes.
These two facts prove that the topic I'M
der discussion is the most serious and i'm
portant one connected with the whole
question Of fire insurance: They also show
that the most necessary thing to be done
to protect property is to learn the causes of
fires and remove us many of them as posi-
BILE.
NOW, how can the public best learn the
causes of fires and the means of reducing
them2 Certainly not by individual eXpe-
rience, but through the combined experience
Of all the companies engaged in the busi-
ness, and not by this in our state alone,
but throughout the whole country. TIL
hundreds bf chtses Of fires can never be
known to the public In any other way than
through the insurance companies, because
this Information is not gathered and COM
piled by any other statistical bureau ex-
cept that Of the fire insurance companies.
And even when such causes are known,
there is nothing that will so surely hasten
their removal or correction as the certain
knowledge that failure to correct material
ly Increases the rates of premium charged,
not only on the faulty risk, but on all
others exposed to it. State laws and city
ordinances can not alone be depended Upon
to remedy faults Of construction, the accu-
Lmulation of combustible material in cellars
and back yards, defective electric wiring,
storing ashes In wooden receptacles and
I the many other things which cause fires
that are daily done; for, in the first place,
there is with us no standard for any of
4 these things, and consequently a great d.
versity Of opinion exists as to what is
faulty construction, combustible material
or defective wiring; and, in the second
place, the laws and ordinances are not
strictly and impartfally enforced. Insur-
Sance companies have standards and rules
which must be complied with by the pub
lie that the assured may reap such bene-
its as certainly accrue from a compliance
Herewith.
1T is, therefore, in the interest of every
property owner that insurance companies be
allowed to inform us In the most effective
way just what their standards and rules
are. They should be permitted to freely
interchange information, agree upon ques-
lions Of improvement in construction and
in protection, and to publish for the infor-
nation Of each other and the public a
schedule Of rates, just as railroad compa-
nies do. By this means the property own
er could see how his rate was computed
III every case. He would see what de-
fciencies he was penalized FOR and what
credit he would receive for Improvement,
and the result would be that in the
great majority Of cases Improvement
would be promptly made. II companies
were allowed to combine in the employ
ment Of experts to inspect, classify and rate
their risks they could reduce their losses
and expenses and thereby cheaper the cost
Of insurance to the Dublic.
Antf.Compact Law.
Adequate and equitable rates, based
upon the merits and dement's Of each risk,
are in the interest Of both the policy hold
er and the stockholder. Without these the
burden of insurance is unequally distrIb-
uted and one mans property protected at
the expense of another. One expert can
inspect and fix proper rates for all compa-
MES on any given risk in the same time
required to do this for any one of them.
IL companies are allowed to cooperate all
could use one expert, whereas, If each is
compelled to perform this task for itself
the expense, Of course, Is increased CORE
spondingly, and in the case Of property
requiring the policies Of ten or more COM
panies, O single company could not secure
correction, for it would require the COOP
Grafton and influence of all interested. Take,
~ SuA 0k0lS ANP1tO1 6UpRODC u
is desired to insure it for $500, 900 or more,
and 1t would require ten or more companies
to write this sum, no one company being
willing to write more than $780, voc, one ex-
pert could inspect and rate the risk in ac-
cordance with the schedule and his rate
would be accepted by ali the companies en-
the risk. Under our present law no two
or more agents could agree on q rate with
out a violation of our anti-compact law,
thus forcing each company to inspect and
rate the risk independently of each other,
and an Improvement that would secure "a
reduction from one company might not be
considered by many others on the risk.
This condition applied to Mr.. Rothenberg's
risk In Meridian and all others in this
state.
Credits for correction Of faults which
cause fires would encourage proper con-
vent the spread Of fires, and both would
tend toward the protection of property
from dre losses and finally result In cheap
er insurance to all property owners. So,
gentlemen. the cooperation Of insurance
companies Is directly In the interest Of the
community, and should be encouraged in
stead OF prohibited. Under the operation
OF the anti-compact law companies use the
highest published estimate ofmgpecial
agents OF the various companies In the
field.
'"Fhe special agent viii inspect and rate a
risk or town, send his estimate to his
company and a copy <of such estimate to
~ insurance journal, which publishes it
Tor 49, info@aaation of agents and comma