The New York herald., 1921-09-09
BURGLARY PREMIUM
RAISED 10PER CENT,
DOUBLED IN 5 YEARS
RObberies in Homes Grow,
Less Loot Is Found, Say
Insurers.
ANOTHER RISE LIKELY
Blanket Policy Dropped and
Further Measures Are
Threatened.
NEW SCHEDULE MONDAY
Companies Deeply Concerned
Over Winter Outlook for
Increase in Crime.
NEW SCHEDULE MONDAY

The crime wave which has gripped
New York city for the last several
months has caused such a tremendous
increase In the number OF robberies Of
homes that the insurance companies
VIII Increase burglary insurance rates
10 per cent, beginning next Monday.
They also will discontinue blanket
forms of policy, so that the house.
holder will have to pay separate pre-
MUM for each class of property. The
new rates will represent an increase
of 100 per cent. in burglary insurance
premiums in the last Ave years.
The decision to raise the rates again
was reached on Wednesday afternoon
at meeting of the Burglary Insur-
ance Underwriters Association at the
Hotel Pennsylvania. 1t was said that
in the last six months the robberies of
homes have increased about 40 per
cent. losses have increased from %
to 100 per cent. and that less than
one half of one per cent. OF the valu
ables taken by burglars are being re-
covered by the police.
The increased activity OF the burglars
has created situation which the bur-
glar insurance companies characterize
as desperate; so much so that the new
rates will make burglary insurance cost
eight times as much as fire insurance.
1t was admitted at the meeting on
Wednesday that burglary insurance
rates soon would become prohibitive II
any more increases are found necessary,
but the heads of many Of the companies
said they must raise premiums or go to
the wall.
One OF the significant things about the
new rates and the new policies Is that
they will exclude wines and liquors un-
less at the high rate Of s7s a thousand.
So much liquor has been stolen that the
Insurance companies do not consider
this property paying risk.
An officer OF one OF the insurance
companies offered this reason for the
increase in rates:
"The 10 per cent. rate increase and
the change In the form OF policy were
rendered imperative by the disastrous
experience OF all companies writing
burglary insurance, especially In New
York. Philadelphia and Chicago We
are looking forward to the winter with
deep concern, as conditions tend to be-
come worse"
The meeting OF the underwriters asso-
citation was arranged by the president,
Samuel Brewster Of the American Surety
Company. The chief outside company.
tho Fidelity and Casualty, was repre-
sented and agreed to discontinue the old
blanket form Of policy. The action was
written into a resolution which said
Resolved. That the present resident
coinsurance policy shall be the only
residence policy authorized by this asso-
ciation and that the coinsurance clause
may be eliminated from the policy for
rates Of 10 per cent. increase over the
present printed manual rates. and that
the rates for this policy. with the pres
ent co.nsurance clause. shall be 20 per
cent. discount from the rates adopted
hereby for the same policy with the CO.
insurance clause eliminated"
One insurance official said last night
that his company had not found the
conditions about burslaries and recov-
cries as bad as pictured by other in
suranco men.