NEW INSURANCE NOTIONS.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3207, 8 October 1881, Page 3

NEW INSURANCE NOTIONS.

Sb'ne' Wellington p'e.ople, at their wits ends for business novelties, have hit off a new thing. Utopian as it may at the first blush appear, perhaps it deserves more than passing comment. The idea is simple enough, altough we hare no doubt it will be found open to_ objection in certain quarters. Tho proposal is one wherein the fire insurance rate can be avoided, every householder becoming his or her own insurer. The scheme is propounded, in this way, and we fancy that Insurance companies, whose names are simply legion just now, will be interested at the details. It ie suggested that owners of property should form themselves into a company—a part-mutual kind of . business, evidently — and insure' their own property, a3 shipping cfwners possessed of a large fleet of vessels often timef do. Each person supporting , the dtie'stlori would render himself liable to , the company for for every share lie' acquired, no shareholder being allowed moire" than five shares in connection with one building. Those shares would each represent a policy.of .insurance of £100. A deposit of one shilling ptef ghare would have to be made, and the insurer would be required to pay five shillings per share yearly. The! notion is that this would amply cover any ordinary risk. Supposing 8000 shares were thus taken up, there would be a capital, say, of £40,000, but it is not expected that the shareholders would be called upon to pay the pound. Co-operation of course is oozing out of erery pore of the proposal, and for that reason we feel inclined to support it. Besides it is practical and feasible. There , are no asperities about it. What, after all, is the basis upon which the present Insurance Companies are working ? Their principles of success are pretty well in the hands of chance, of clever management, and principally, of popular support. This new company proposes to start without any capital, the deposit of one shilling being merely to cover preliminary expenses. And any losses would have to be met by calls upon the shareholders who would be more than is usually tho case in our Insurance Companies, pariioipi criminis in this new channel of Co-operation. The prospectus will, we are told be circulated shortly. We shall read its contents with interest. If the proposal is initiated on a proper , and sound basis, we cannot help thinking that it will be one beneficial to the " small people," to the working men especially; and that it will meet one of the many demands of the times. —Canterbury Standard,