Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1916-05-23
COMMISSIONER ENGLISH cRlTi-
cIsEs CERTAIN HAIL IN
suRANcE CONCERNS. N.
ExTRAvAeANcE CHARGED {
AGAINST MANAeEMENTs
Some Concerns Well and Economical
" Managed, Others Lavish il Ex-
penditu1esAs Assessment Associations
SUPPOSED to % Business at Cost
Loss Hazards Great.
special to Times Republican,

Special to Times Republican,
Des Moines, May 80. In report
given out today by Insurance Commits
sioner Emory English covering stock
and mutual fire companies, state NUT
ual fire Expectations and state mutual
hail associations the commissioner
criticizes the commissions and field
expense paid by hail associations.
Not ali hail associations have an abb
normal expense as compared to fire
associations, he declares, but this fac.
only increases the grounds for criti-
cism on those that are extravagant.
Reporting on mutual hail in surance
associations, C Commissioner English,
AMONG other things. says: s
Numerous complaints have been
filed with the department against GER
tain Of these associations tending to
establish MISREPRESENTATION by their
agents as to the cost Of protection to
the policy ; holders. The examiners
reports show that the expense of oper-
ating those associations far exceeds
the protection furnished. Some Of
them seem to be managed economical
iy while the conduct of others seems
to be attended by the grossest ex-
travagance." :.
Shows Insurance Cost.
Commissioner English shows in a
table included in the report that the
cost per. $1,000 of insurance written
for five years from Jan. l. 1910, to
Dec. 81, 1914, was 500 for state NUT
ual fire associations and $2T.31 for
state mutual hail associations. Cons
menting on this showing he says; #
The season in which haik insurance
can be written is less than one half Of
the year This makes the agents ems
ploy ment temporary and demands a
corresponding higher rate of commits
sion.S This difference, however, utterly
fails to account for the fact that the
commissions and field expenses Of hail
associations were more than eight
times that Of fire associations per
$1,000 of insurance written. \
The hazard of losses from hail are
probably greater than the hazard of
llosses from fire. If we eliminate the
losses from both classes it is found
that the expense of-.the hail associa-
ton is nearly seven times the expense
Of the fire associations. A portion OF
this increased expense is found in
commissions and field expense. Tne
next wide divergence is found in the
salaries Of officers and clerks which is
more than Ave times greater with the
hail associations than with the fire as
social ions I s..sl<5 ~ u;
Commissioner English declares thai
these mutual assessment ASSOCIATIONS
are supposed to do business az cost
collecting, only such amount beyond
that as would give them a working
fund. However, some-of them seem
to have takenS advantake Of their privi-
leges BY building up excess funds far
beyond the amount necessary. while
others have taken the opposite ex-
treme and are doing business on bor-
rowed money he declares. 1T is re-
GREETED that the statutes do not give
this department the authority to
equitably regulate a matter of such
vital Importance to the public" All