Evening star., 1925-02-27
NEW RECORD MADE
BY INSURANCE MEN
Both Group and Individual
Policies Are in Great De-
mand at Present.
ny j. c. ROYLE.

6peCldi blspalCH 10 ut star
NEW YORK, February 27.-The in
surance companies of the United
States have had the two biggest
months in their history since Janu-
airy /. The general prosperity of the
country and the activity in business
and industry are held accountable.
The Increase in the sale of life in
surance has been marked both in the
number of policies written and IN
their average amount.
The cost of living has gone up,
but so has the value of life. Both
the insurance companies and those
insured have recognized that fact.
Formerly, big life insurance COM
panies were loath to assume a risk
on a single individual in excess OF
$250,O0O. Now for man to be in
sured for a million or more is not
novelty. With the increase in his
earning capacity and more general
employment the man in moderate
circumstances has felt able and will
ing to add to the insurance protec-
tion he could leave his family.
Group Insurance Spreads.
Large corporations have found it
expedient to insure their employees
and executives. Good executives are
scarce, and the custom has become
general of protecting the organiZa-
tion from possible loss from the
death of an executive until man can
be found or trained to take his place
Group insurance has grown by
leaps and bounds. This movement has
been augmented by the fact that pre-
miums paid by an employer on pol
icy on the life OF an employe under
which the family of the employe Is
the beneficiary are deductable from
income tax returns as expenses OF
the business. The growth of group
insurance has not served to check
the spread of individual insurance
among waEe-earners, according TO
Edgar Reeve of the New York Llte,
who has written nearly sZ'ooO'ooo
worth of insurance in the last year.
1t has merely served TO draw their at
tention to the benefits of insurance.
As a result, they are eager to add TO
the benefits which accrue under the
group plan.
The same is true of the continua-
ton of the governmental insurance
opened to members of the American
forces during the war. This lnsur-
ance is at an exceptionally low rate
but in many instances men who nave
kept up their payments have also
taken out policies with various lndl-
yidual insurance corporations.
Inheritance Tax Big Factor.
Agents declare that perhaps the
greatest influence in promoting in
crease of life insurance has been the
/ income and inheritance taxes. This
lis especially true in the case OF
wealthy men. Under the Federal rev.
enue act of 1924 inheritance taxes
range from / per cent on the first
$4,000 to 40 per cent on all over
$4,000 900. The total tax on a
0,000 900 estate would be SIS, ,561 900.
Men with large fortunes are taking
out insurance to cover taxes such as
these and to obviate the difficulties
attendant upon administration of an
estate consisting of stocks, bonds and
real estate in the various States. In
one instance a State declined to per-
nit the transfer of a stock certifi-
cate at the request of an admins
TRAITOR because the company repre-
sented by the stock owned property
In that State. The State asserted
that the deceased, through his stock
ownership, was a part owner in the
property of the company, and de-
c1ined to permit transfer until a State
inheritance tax had been paid.
Insurance men declare that an in
surance estate is practically free
from taxation, having paid it's taxes
at the source in the securities repre-
sented in the reserve of the insurance
company.