The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-07-13
GEORGIA NEEDS
 INSURANCE LAWS Commissioner WrightPOin Out Graft Schemes CONDUCTED BY MAIL Alabama Man Has His Eyes Opened. .s Captain Wright Says That the
 States Laws Need Gen
 eral Revision
CONDUCTED BY MAIL

Q Atlanta. July 12-(special.) .)--Fraternal insurance organizations, so-called, will continue to reap a rich harvest in Georgia, besides proving upon people in adjoining states, unless the legislature sees fit at this session to, throw much needed re- strictions around them, is the opinion of Insurance Commissioner William A. Wright.
 All they have to do now Is to secure charter from the superior court and then be sharp enough to dodge the laws against cheating and swindling There is absolutely no protection for the policy holder beyond the word of the company, sometimes no more than an individual with a dummy board of directors. There is no provision for the supervision of these companies to see that they are car rying out in good faith their promises to policy y-holders. They are not requirea to deposit with the state treasurer any guarantee fund as are other insurance companies. In other words, there are no restrictions upon them except the actual law against fraud, which is, as is proven by experience, quite easily cir cumvented.
 Asks for Protection Year after year Comptroller General Wright, who is also insurance commits soner has appealed to the legislature to cract laws governing this class of insur- ance which will protect the policy -hoder and just as periodically has his request been ignored.
 The usual equipment of these companies consists of the man who runs 1t, a stem ographer, an office desk, policy forms and literature. Sometimes the stenographer may be dispensed with, though as most of the business is transacted by mail she is a necessary part of the office furni- ture.
 An Alabama man who held policy for S1000 in one of these Georgia concerns wrote to Atlanta the other day to find out something about It. He had paid sll initiation fee and g yearly as dues. Then every time anybody died he was called on for s1 .S5 as his assessment; the S11 and the s2 and the S5 cents all went to the company, and the estate of the dead person got the s1. How many more dol lars the estate got depended on the num- Der of members in the division. Each division is supposed to have 1000 members; some of them havn't more than 1OO if that many.
 In that event the policy-hoders estate would only get $1o0, although 1t called for s1OOO But the company is protected against any comeback on this point; it is only the policy-hoder who has no protection. t- .-
 There are 20 or more of these fraternal insurance companies operating In Geor- gia. Every now and then one falls out and another springs up; two may spring up to take it's place.
 A lawyer went into Insurance CommIs- sioner Wright's office a short time ago to get license for benevolent a- fraternal insurance organization. He had secured his charter.
 Who are the officers of this com pany?" Captain Wright asked.
 That's the president said the at- torney, pointing to dirty, tattered negro man who was along with him and who looked like tramp.
 Refund the License
 lHe cOfuptTOIleT general lOlu lHe lawyer that he was law abiding citizen, but for one time he was going to break the law and refuse to issue the license asked. The attorney told him he had no right to dis crlminate against the man on account of his color and Captain Wright's reply was
 'Wel, go ahead and mandamus me, and I'll have the negro introduced as Exhibit A"
 The lawyer and the would-be president of his insurance company went away and have never returned
 Captain Wright says the insurance laws Of Georgia are in need of general revision in order to give the policy-holder full and proper protection in every respect There are other things that ought to be done, but the fraternal insurance situa- ton Is now regarded as the most fragrant evil, and there is a general feeling Athat the legislature should not longer let it stand as it is-a scheme for getting money out of the pockets of the poorer classes who may not be able to take policies in the companies which require big lump sum payments.
 There is no doubt that fraternal insur- ance properly conducted would be a good thing for this class, but as it is at pres ent many of them are paying for some thing which they do not get.