COMPANY MEETINGS
ROYAL EXCHANGE ASSURANCE
PREMIUM INCOME EXCEEDS £10,000,000
THE two hundredth and eighteenth annual general Court of the Royal Exchange Assurance was held on April 27th at the Royal Exchange, London.
Mr. Vivian Hugh Smith (the Governor) in the course of his speech, said : In our Life Department the year 1937 saw once again a further increase in our business, the total amounting to £4,734,000. The net sum assured was appreciably higher at £4,655,000. The total premium income was £1,352,000, which again shows an advance. Th.. Life Assurance Fund now amounts to £13,239,000.
I am again able to report to you a good result of the year's business of our Fire Department. The total underwriting profit amounted to £177,000, an advance of some £6,000 over the profit for 1936. After taking credit for approximately £48,000, being the net interest received, there is available for transfer to profit and loss account a sum of £225,000. I think we have every reason to be satisfied with the standard maintained by this department. In the case of the Home, the general foreign field and in the United States of America, our loss ratios have been lower than those of the preceding twelve months.
It has never been the practice or intention of offices to cover war risk in this country. I trust sincerely that we here may be spared the horrors of war, but you will agree that the engines of destruction are now capable of damage of such magnitude that the risk is not one that insurance companies can possibly accept. For this reason we, in common with every British company and the underwriters of Lloyds, have drawn the attention of policyholders to the fact that risks of this nature are definitely excluded from the scope of their insurance cover.
The Marine Department has been comprehensively reorganised.
ACCIDENT DEPARTMENT.
I am pleased to be able to record another good year in our Accident Department. The net premiums for the year amounted to £1,205,000 and the underwriting profit, together with net interest, has resulted in a sum of £102,500 being transferred to the General Profit and Loss Account. This is the second year in succession that we have been able to transfer a sum in excess of £100,000 to our General Profit and Loss Account, and while I naturally hope that we may look lot ward to a continuance of these satisfactory results, yet we must not forget that there are some uncertain conditions which still persist in the business of writing Accident business.
A further large section deals with Motor Vehicle insurance, where the tendency to grant increasing awards by the Courts in cases arising out of motor car accidents shows no signs of abating. The report of the Departmental Committee appointed by the Board of Trade to con- sider the question of compulsory insurance has now been issued, and if the recommendations contained are adopted, it would appear that the result is likely to be additional cost of motor car insurance. Every effort will continue to be made to keep premiums adjusted to the measure of risk that is undertaken. . • Your directors have recommended a final dividend of 19 per cent. for the year 1937. This dividend, together with the interim dividend, makes 30 per cent., less tax, on the capital stock of the Corporation for the year 1937.
I think I can justly claim a sense of satisfaction. For the first time in our history the Premium Income for the Royal Exchange Group as a whole has exceeded ten million pounds, while our combined assets exceed 30 million pounds. These figures, in the 218th year of the existence of the Royal Exchange Assurance, speak, I think, very well of its virility.
The report was unanimously adopted.
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