Los Angeles herald., 1909-02-23
NEW INSURANCE
COMPANY STARTS
LOS ANGELES ACQUIRES A
STRONG INSTITUTION
FIRE AND MARINE WILL HAVE
$500 900 CAPITAL
With Home Office Here, Insurance
Will Be Written Over Entire
State-Organization Now
in Progress

For many years Los Angeles citizens
have been backward in the matter Of
organizing fire insurance companies.
Through the unfortunate failure of a
former local company many business
men seem to think this field is unsafe
for the promotion of an enterprise of
this character.
The success of a new fire insurance
company depends upon having a suf-
ficient surplus to take care of the eX-
penseS and losses for the first few
years and very conservative and ex-
perienced underwriting management.
With tSeSe two factors well provided
for, there is no reason why Los An
geles should not have two or three sue
cessful insurance companies, and after
they are well established would prove
a source of great revenue to the city:
The latest fire insurance company to
be started here is the Los Angeles Fire
and Marine, with a capital of 100000
and a surplus of $235,000.
Offices have been secured in the
Merchants Trust building, 209 South
Broadway, and the work of organiZa-
tion is under the management If
Bradstreet Miller
This company" said Mr.. Miller yes
terday, sis being organized along con-
servative lines, and will confine its
operations for d number of years %
the state of, California. The company
will have a capital of 5000 900 and a Suf-
ficient surplus to protect itself and poi
icy holders from ordinary fire losses
and leave an ample amount to guard
against the conflagration hazard. The
stock of the company is being offered
TO the public in California, Arizona and
Nevada. The directorate of the COM
pany will consist of nineteen successful
and we'll known business men of un-
questionable character.
Clean and Successful Men
''The manager will be a man of clean
writer in the past and present and
familiar with every phase of the fire
insurance business.
"I have had ten years experience in
the life insurance business with vary
ing degrees of success. Last year
promoted the Realty Owners syndi-
cate of Seattle. A. K. Jones, a sue
ciated with the company and will de-
vote his time to the organization Cf
the country business.
''We also have a number of local
men who are devoting their attention
to the sale of stock"
The business of fire insurance has
grown rapidly in the last few years
commercial progress of the United
States, and has now reached vast pro-
portions. In round numbers $43 ,00O 000-
600 Of fire and marine risks We're IN
force in this country at the termination
of the year 1907; the premiums for that
year aggregated 1920, 000 900, and the
loss payments We're about $50 O00 0OO
while the assets of the fire and marine
insurance companies approximated
$50, 900, of which sum about $265,
90. 900 represented surplus as to policy
holders.
All fire insurance companies which
are properly managed pay satisfactory
dividends to their stockholders. Hart
ford fire insurance companies in Jan
uary this year declared the following
dividends:
Hartford fire. 10 per cent quarterly;
National fire, 6 per cent semi-annually;
Connecticut fire 6 per cent semi-annu-
ally; Aetna, per cent quarterly;
Phoenix, 8 per cent quarterly.
Fortieth State Report
The insurance department of the
state of California, in it's fortieth an
nual report to the governor, gives the
following information:
During the year lis companies wrote
fire and marine insurance: II wrote
only fire insurance, and % only marine
risks; 13 wrote fire and marine. Two
of the 11S were California organiza-
tions, 66 eastern and so foreign. The
total promiums paid on fire insurance
in the state during the year was $16,-
242,1 and the total paid on losses
$7,000,000; of the losses paid, half was
for fires in the previous year, so that
of the 1922, los paid the companies,
in premiums only $3,279,600 was paid
for fire losses during the year. In other
words, for each 81 paid in losses s.
had been taken in in premiums.
Many persons underestimate the inn
portance of a home office of a large in
surance company to the financial status
of a city. A home office means that
large sums of money are kept in the
banks of that city instead of being
sent away to swell the deposits and
& clearances of other cities.
The Los Angeles Fire and Marine
Insurance company will, it is said. be
conducted along safe and sane lines.
and will for number of years confine
its business to the state of California.