ACCIDENT INSURANCE

Marlborough Express, Volume LX, Issue 229, 28 September 1926, Page 5

ACCIDENT INSURANCE

THE TARIFF REVISED efFect of new act. NO GENERAL INOREASE. (By Teiegraph— Own Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, Sept. 28. The accident ihsuranoe rates in New Zealand a-re tlie- subject of revision every six years, and as a result o-f the reoent actuarial investigation, which took into- account the clainis in every industry during the period ,a new tariff comes into op-er a t i on . i n D e ce-mhe r . It is reported in insuranee c-ircles that ihe n-ew rates are being adj usted qn lin-es which secure no in-c-rease in the- gross preminm income, but that the incidenc© of accident in certain, trades -o-r industries will for.oe companies and the State- Department t-o m ake individual increas-es. For instancei, it is rega,rded as certain that freezin-g work and ti-mber mills will have t-o pay incr-eased pr-emiums, and that a small l'ise will be liotified t-o farmers. However, a large number of less hazardous lndustries will benefit- by i oductions clesigned to offs-et tlie increases in other directions. A new tariff is being prepare-d in conjunction with the State Accident Department-, the companies being quite prepared to accept its -decisions r-egarding premiums, as the incidenee- i-s fixed actuarily. This p-hase of insuranee business is growing rapidlv, nearly two millio-ns of new mdustrial insuranee- ha-ving b-een added in the last year for which statistics are available, while the total insuranee carriecl exceeds £9,000,000. INCRKASED COMPENSAT'ION . The revi-sion indicated above is independent o-f the amendm-ent in the W o-rkers' Oompen-sation Act p-a-ssed l^st session, which substantially in-cr-eases the benefits. The tota-1 incapacity or death claim may amount to £1000 instead of th-e former £750, while compensation for partial incapacity is increased, from 58 per oent. of a worker'-s average earnings to 66 j; per oent., the. weekly total not %t-o- exce-ed £4, conipare-d with the former limit of £3 15s. Ihe impprtant question arises whether the insuranee companies will increase their rates to mee-t the higher risks, Tlie- Minister in charge of the State Insuranee Departments has announced that the State Office will not charge higher premiums, and it has been d-ecided by the private companies that they will follow tlie isame policy. However, as the experience of both State and commercial oonoerns is that claims under industrial policies amonnt to- 63 per oe-nt. of the premium inconie, leaving a margin of 37 per oent. for oommissions and other expens-es-, all insuranee c-oncerns ar-e feeling the need for close attention to e-xpenses, as- the expenses margin wlien the new Act ope-ra-tes on January 1st will he redueed to 211 per oent.