Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1910-12-17

amount Of regular life insurance writ
ten in this country. Jan. l. 1910. was
Sl2,513.125.1S0, to which may be
added s3,1O0,000.000 OF industrial In
surancc. with s1O,O0O.000. 900 OF fra
ternal and assessment insurance.
These vast investments are projected
by legal reserves. as required by law
in various states. the bulk OF these re-
serves being invested in interest-bcar-
ing securities According to collated
reports. the United States Is shown to
be in advance of all other nations in
the amount of life insurance carried,
and Utah has done and is doing her
share in helping swell the grand total.
Speaking of the life insurance BUSH
ness for 1910 Mr.. n. G. Stringham.
secretary of the Beneficial Life In
Surance company says:
THE life insurance companies OF the
United States report good progress for
the year, considering the general de-
preston in all business lines. 1t l..
hardly expected that as much new
business Will be produced this year as
there was during 1909, although sub
stantial gains will be made in soma
favorable localities.
Tile legislatures of a number of
states have come to realize that
legislation respecting the business OF
life Insurance, enacted since the great
New York insurance investigation of
1905. has been carried too far. Com-
panics have been too much restricted
in the amount Of any kind of con-
tracts they were permitted to issue and
not allowed enough freedom in the
methods of Investments of funds Tho
pendulum commenced swinging the
other way early in 1910, so that from
now on we may look for more modcr-
ate legislation where laws are needed
,,r.
business
THE competition between companies
has had a marked tendency toward
the writing of more liberal contracts
for policy holders. In the liberal terms
that have from time to time been Of
iercd the people by way of what has
become known as the disability clause,
etc, in policies where the company
agrees to grant liberal concessions in
the event Of the permanent disable
ment Of the policy holder, the way
seems to have been led by the smaller
ana younger companies During tho
present year, quite q number Of larger
companies have added these moru
liberal features to their contracts, and
now practically all companies offer
policy holders a great deal more for
their money than could have been OBJ
tanned 10 years ago.
with reference to local conditions,
it is pretty generally conceded that
Utah has one Of the most complete
ana vet liberal insurance laws Of any
of the states. Some few amendments
to the present code. however, are
needed and these amendments will DO
presented to the next legislature None
but good solvent companies are now
permitted to do business in Utah and
the commissioner OF insurance Is given
pretty wide discretionary powers in
determining the solvency of companies
applving for admission to the state.
Life Insurance companies. now
operating in this intcr-mountain ter
rtory, are pretty generally sending out
n better class Of statesmen than re-
presented life Insurance several years
ago. The agent Of today is compelled.
not only by the Insurance laws, but
by his company, to sell a life insurance
contract on its merits without mis-
representation, either In claiming more
for his policy than the policy states.
or in dcpreciuting the value of q COM
petitors policy that may be in tho
hands Of his prospect
.rhcse good insurance laws, together
will, the attitude of tho companies
themselves. are bringing the people
to Il greater respect for the business
Of life Insurance and to a fuller realza-