NATIONAL MUTUAL LIFE.

Shannon News, 8 January 1924, Page 3

NATIONAL MUTUAL LIFE.

A SUCCESSFUL (YEAR. LARGE ADDITION TO ASSURANCE FUND, Remarkable expansion. oi' business was reported at Uie 54th annual meeting of the National Muituai Lite Association of Australasia, Limited, beta at Melbourne on December 19. The chairman of directors (Mr A. Newell) presided, THE REPORT, The report .and balance sheet, which were adopted, showed that the income for the year, after deducting reassurance premiums, was £3,9-n>,iy< 2s lid. Premiums on policies amounted to £2,953,024 8s sd, and interest, rents, and lees to £987,152 14s. 6d. The .expenditure for the year was £1,629,503 16s 9d, which included £1,343,406 9s 9d paid to policy-holders or thenrepresentatives. Of the latter amount £157,609 17s TOd was paid under Equitable Life Assurance Society Policies, which were taken over by the association, The sum ql £2,310,583 6s 2d was added to. the assurance fund, which, .alter allowing for the amount transferred to the- staff superannuation fund, was £18,868,242 9s 6d at the ■close of the year ended September 30. Thirteen thousand eight hundred and seventy, new policies were issued during the year, assuring £5,884,786 9s 3d. During the year the association re-as-sured the contracts under the Australasian policies of the. Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States, which amounted to. £1,310,877 12s lid. The new, annual premiums on the policies issued amounted to £234,839 2s sd, and the single premiums, including the consideration received from the Equitable Society, to £977,819 6s 7d< The consideration for annuities amounted to £29,438 16s. Deaths during the year numbered 1024. They involved claims under .1189 policies;, which amounted, with bonuses to £526,239 16s 2d. One thousand seven hundred and forty-seven endowment assurances matured, and claims amounting to £407,939 12 s 10d. were paid. Seven hundred and sixty endowments, involving; the payment of £118,153 9s lod, matured. Thirty-two annuitants died during the year, and the annuities payable to them amounted to £2140 8s 4d. CHAIRMAN’S ADDRESS. In moving the adoption of the. report ahd balance sheet, Mr Newell said: —

“Since our last meeting the association has lost two friends by the deatn of Sir William Fraser and Mr G. S. Littlejohn. Sir William Fraser was a director ojf our New Zealand bi'aiich for 2:5. years, and Mr Littlejohn was a director of our New South Wales branch for 20 years. Both took an active interest in the affairs of the Association. Messrs J. M. A. liott .and O. .. S.. Watkins have been appointed directors qf tire New Zealand branch, and Sir William Vicars has been appointed a director oi the New South Wales branch. Tire report which r s now submitted to you shows that during the last year the business of the association has expanded to a remarkable extent. The new business of £5,884,786 is £877,219 greater than the total for the previous year. It is the largest volume of business that we have transacted in any year*, with the exception of 1920. If We add the amount acquired under tire re-assur-ance contract referred to in the report! the total exceeds even the figures of that year. Our income for the year, £3,940,177, was £1,217,665 more than the income of the previous year. This amount and others in the revenue account, to which 1 shall refer, were largely affected fey the. re-assurance transaction. The interest received is equal to £5 11 s ,6d per cent, of the mean amount of tp.e funds. The amount paid to policy holders, £!,- 343,406, is £374,261 more Ulan me amount paid in the previous year, but the death claims which are included in tnis total are much below the expectation. The amount added to the funds, £2,310,583, is by l'ar the largest amount that has been added in any. one year. The principal charges in the balnce-sheet are.- an increase of £593,000 in the value of .Government mid municipal debentures held, of £405,000 in loans on mortgage, of £400,000 in loads to policy holders, and of £177,000 in aiou-se property.

A NEW ITEM. “A new item appears in the trust account oi tne Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States. The amount of £723,425, represents Government debentures which are held by the Commercial Bank of Australia., in Melbourne, as trustee, in accordance with the laws of the United States, it will be largely reduced by the end of the current calendar year, and the debentures will bo included with the ordinary assets of the association as the Equitable policies that we re-assured are

formally transferred to the association. The re-assurance contract provided that as part consideration the. assets, of the Equitable' Society in Austalasia, including the Melbourne, and Sydney buildings, were to become the property of this association. We .were, gilad to. consent to our friends, .the Colonial Mutual Life Society, acquiring the Melbourne building for their head office. W'e will retain the Sydney building for our New South Wales branch.. We have recently purchased a property in Auckland, New Zealand, for the accommodation of our district agency. . We now. own sixteen buildings in the principal towns where we are conducting business. They are valued in our books at. more titan £l,100,00 Q, and are excellent assets for that amount. GROWTH OF BUSINESS.

To illustrate the growth and expansion of the association, my mind goes back to the time, not many

years ago, when., for' our head office, we shared with a fire insurance company the occupation of a rented building. When we moved to the building in which we sare now meeting, the assurance fund amounted to about half the amount .that has been added to the fund as \the result cl

last year’s transactions. We grate, fully acknowledge the splendid work that was done by thos© who had charge of the association’s affairs in those early days; the sure foundation which they built has made it possible for us to reach the present dimensions. The work in connection with the, first allotment of annual bonus—as you are aware, we have hitherto allotted bonuses at intervals of three years—is nearly completed. It is expected that the certificates will be issued at the end of March. The association has received since its foundation nearly £28,400,000 as premiums on policies, it has paid more than £16,300,000 to policy holders or their representatives, and it has net funds invested on behalf of present policy holders and as their absolute property more than £18,800,000. These are largje figures, but our ambition is to he not necessarily the largest company, but the best, and the best company is thait which gives the best service to its policy holders and the community.” Sir John MacFarland was re-elect-ed a director of the association. Messrs H. C. Tudehope and W. M. Jarvie were re-appointed auditors.

W. Grey, District Agent for Manawatu.—(Published by arrangement).