Omaha daily bee., 1910-09-19

The National Local Fire Insurance.
AGENTS convention meets in Chicago
today. and IT is an event Of great Inn
portance in the insurance world. Just now
there is a widespread effort among in
surance companies TO cut down the com.
missions paid 70 agents 1t Is claimed by
the insurance Companies that in the past
too much Of the premiums has been used
in paying agents IL is admitted that in
surance rates are now too high. and thst
something must be done TO reduce them.
IL being believed that a reduction in rates
will result In more than a corresponding
increase in business The last few months
have witnessed movement all along the
line to stop the cut-throat competition that
has been going on, the insurance men be.
Heving that such methods do harm 10 the
business rather than good.
There IL ample room for a reduction OF
insurance rates and much opportunity for
a hewing down OF expenses incident to the
business This is shown by figures furn.
ished in the report made to the New York
commissioner OF insurance. covering a
period Of twenty years ending on the first
Of last January During those two de-
were paid TO the insurance companies re-
porting TO the New York department Of
insurance. During the same period losses
aggregsting Si.sSS. 10000 were paid. The
expense OF conducting the business
amounted TO 81. .oOO, 90. 1t will be seer
from this that $50 per cent OF IN,
premiums were paid hack to the insured
while sT.S represented the expense of tn,
business.
Insurance statistics afford perhaps tn,
best evidence OF the effectiveness OF thu
crusade against national waste in tn,
United states Figures covering the frs
half OF the current year show that IL &
the first year since 1905 that the losses
from fire in the United States have falleI
under siOo,oooOoO for the first SIX month
OF the year Insurance men believe tina
the declining ratio Of loss may be snothe
factor in the reduction OF insurance rates
That there is still great opportunity 70
cutting down fire risks is shown by IN
/ fact that II they were as good in Nortl
America as they are in Europe, our annua
900 instead of tI5o,O0OOoo.
Fire insurance had its beginning in tn
great London confagration Of 1856. Rela
!
astrous fire the world has ever known
the actual loss then sustained amounted {
$50. 10000. which would be more thai
$500 900, 900 according to present day valua
tons Three fourths Of all the houses Il
London were destroyed. and ten years afte
the fire there was still abundant evidenc
| OF the destruction IL had wrought In l66
the first regular system of insuring build
ings against fire began. Nicholas Barbo
| opened an office and had some success
In 1880 he organized a partnership know
as the Fire Office and did considerable
business. About the same time the cit
OF London went into the business. but II
experiment OF municipal insurance was nc
very successful In 1888 the Friendly 50
ciety was organized, IL being an associs
ton of individuals under the mutual plar
In 1896 another mutual, now the Hand-ir
Hand. was organized. This company
still I'm existence.
Charles Povey has the credit OF being tn
originator OF the idea of insuring the cor
tents OF buildings. He organized a CON
pany for this purpose in l7OS, and when hi
venture did not succeed he anticipated mod
ern corporation methods by organism
a holding company TO take over the othei
This was known as the Sun Fire office
and exists 20 the present day, making
the Oldest non-mutuAl insurance compan
in the world. Marine insurance had bee
resorted TO long before fire insurance frs
came into existence. Being the sea-farer
of the world. II was but natural that Eng
land should have been the birthplace
modern marine insurance..
in America the first insurance bushes
was marine. In l721 John Copson of Hig
street, Philadelphia. advertised his bus
ness in the Philadelphia Mercury, an
became the forerunner Of that great brigad
Of advertising agents OF insurance CON
panies in the United States. In 1862 JON
Kidd and william Bradford announce
themselves ready for the business OF in
surfing all sorts OF property and goods. !
1852 the Philadelphia Contnbutorship wa
established, having the endorsement G
Benjamin Franklin. In 1881 a dispute aros
in the Contributorship as TO whether PROF.
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