The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1905-02-09
CAN'T INSURE THE HOGS.
Iowa Insurance Department Makes
Ruling Against lnsurlng Hogs
From Sickness.


The state authorities have promulgat- !
ed very important ruling, or series of
rulings, regulative of the insurance
business in particular phases, says the
Des Moines Register and Leader. In
effect, these rulings are:
First-That individuals, associations
and partnerships which essay to do an
insurance business must comply with !,
the laws regulative of the insurance
business to which corporations engaged |
in it are subject.
Second-That live stock cannot be in
sured in Iowa, against sickness and
death, but may be against accident.
Attorney General Mullan furnished
the legal opinion on which these de-
cisions have been promulgated from the
insurance department of the office of
Auditor of State Carroll.
The Farmers Cooperative Live Stock
Association of Cedar Rapids, of which
S. P. Kuhn and J. B. Leverich are the
officers, sought to do business in the
line of insuring Iowa live stock against
sickness and death, and not be incorpor-
ated, the association, through it's Off
GERS, claiming the right to do an insur-
ance business without conforming to the
conditions set out in the. Estatute affect
ing corporations engagedsin the insur-
ance business.
Auditor Carroll and Mr.. o. O. Roe
Immediately determined that this was
form of insurance not authorized by law,
and they insisted that9 though unincor-
porated the association must conform to
the statute relatingi..to the insurance
business. Taken to the attorney gen
eral, the position taken by the depart-
ment was sustained absolutely. i
The attorney general called attention
to the. fact that the statute has defined
the specific risks against which insur-
ance may be gwritten in EIowa. Since
some are named all others must be ex-
cluded, of course. One subdivision
provides that live stock may be insured
against loss or damage eby accident,
theft or any unknown or contingent
event whichRmay be the subject of legal
insurance" The question asked was
whether insurance against sickness and
death of live stock would be "contin-
gent event." within the meaning of the
law. Death, it is self evident, is not
contingent event; it is absolutely GER
tain, instead.
On the more important question of
whether partnerships, individuals and
unincorporated associates!a have the
right to do an insurance business with
out reference to the laws governing in
surance corporations and the business,
the attorney general is equally positive.
He is certain that they ''must fully COM
ply with the law regulating insurance
other than life before they are entitled
to issue policies of insurance upon any
of the risks permitted by section 1909
of the CODE"
The attorney general says:
Such unincorporated associations,
partnerships or individuals must have
the amount of capital required of in
corporated companies, and are subject
to examination by the auditor as are
corporations organized for the purpose
of carrying on an insurance business,
and have no right to issue policies for
any purpose until they have received
the certificate lof the auditor authoriz-
ing them to do business within the
state. Such associations, partnerships
or individuals are limited to the class of
risks which Incorporated companies are
permitted to insure against, and must
make their annual statements to the
auditor as is required of such incorpo-
rated companies.
Under the provisions of section 1747
of the code, any person, association or
partnership which issues policies of in
surance without having fully complied
with the provisions of chapter 4 of title
TX of the code, is guilty of a misde-
meanor and liable to fine of one thou
sand dollars and to Imprisonment in the
county Jail for one year.
Every such association, partnership
or individual stands upon the same foot
ing as an incorporated insurance COM
pany, so far as the compliance with all
Of the provisions of chapter of title
TX, relating to the manner of carrying
on insurance business in the state, is
concerned.
| 1t may be suggested, as has been
urged before the insurance department
Of the state, that it is the right of every
individual within the state to enter into
a contract of insurance with another
and that any statute which attempts tc
prohibit such contract is unconstitu.
tional, because it abridges the liberty
of contract; and that it follows, there