Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1914-09-02
STATE CANNOT
FIX Fire RATES
Insurance. Commissioner Taylor
Takes Up Matters of Importance
In Annual Report.

surance companies are discussed in
the annual report of the insurance
department which Commissioner w
G. Taylor recently filed with Govern
or Hanna. In view of the certainty
that the forthcoming legislative as
sembly will have to deal with the
subject of the regulation OF control
of fire insurance rates in. this state,
the comments of Commissioner Tay-
lor are especially pertinent. After
calling attention to the large number
Of complaints that reached the de-
partment during the year, Mr.. Tay-
lor says:
"That fire insurance rates should
be made by the state is, to my mind,
quite out of the question. 1t can't be
DONE The necessary data, exper-
fence, machinery and technical
knowledge are not available. Nor is
it desirable that rates should be
made by the state; that is not a
function. But fire insurance rates
might we'll be regulated, just as
railroad rates are supervised and
regulated by state and interstate
commissions. think there should
be some official or board or commits
sion to whom inquiries and COM
plants could be referred and before
whom a full hearing of the matters
in issue could be had.h 4 = trust
that you will give careful considera-
ticn to this subject in your next
kLoF Io~scIo %,,ro - -" ".
Wants Actuary.
Commissioner Taylor strongly ur.
yes the Governor to recommend leg.
islative authority for the appoint
ment of an actuary,a claiming that
the need of the assistance of one
who is skilled in actuarial science
and in the principlesrlof life insur-
ance has long been felt by this de.
partment." AS indica. ing the need
of such assistance and by way OF
showing the rapid development OF
the insurance business in North Da-
kota, Commissioner Taylor invites al
tsnticn to the fact that the receipts
Of his department in 1904 were $685.
ST.; in 1909 they were $11S,27O,
while last years receipts amounted
to 1885, 64. In other words, the an
nual receipts of the department had
increased more than one hundred
thousand dollars in the last ten'year
period.
Referring to the state hail insur-
ance department, which is. under the
management of the commissioner OF
insurance, Mr.. Taylor Every much
regrets having to report that the
hail department will this year be un-
able to pay it's losses in full" Earl
Ter in the season the outlook was
most favorable, but heavy losses
were sustained in August, so that it
is expected that adjustments will be
made on the basis of 80 per cent to
80 per cent.
Only State in Union.
Calling attention to;ethe fact that
North Dakota is the only state in the
Union which engages directly in the
business of nail insurance, Mr.. Tay-
lor says "the experiment has been
watched with interest-sympathetic,
cynical or antagonistic, according to
the viewpoint of the observer" Dur
ing the first three years losses were
paid on the basis of 70, So and 80
per cent respectively, and 1t IS claim
ed that this was by no means an I'M
favorable showing in view of the fact
that rates charged by the state are
very much lower than those charged
by stock companies. The Commits
sioner is convinced, however, that
all losses could have been paid in
full if a large number Of policies had
been issued and the risk widely dis
tributed over the state. Failure OF
the grain growers to more generally
avail themselves of the benefits OF
state hail insurance is said to be luz
to lack Of proper solicitation; the re-
quirement that cash must accom-
pany the application; doubt as to the
| success of the venture; antagonism
ito state insurance, on the ground
that the schemesis chimerical and So
cialistic. In a message to the legis.
lature Commissioner Taylor will call
attention to the system of compul.
scry hail insurance in vogue In the
province Of Saskatchewan, Canada.
>-.,e.Na Arcn