COMPANY MEETINGS
NORWICH UNION LIFE INSURANCE SOCIETY
NEW BUSINESS FIGURE “A REMARKABLE ACHIEVEMENT"
THE 134th annual general meeting of the Norwich Union Life Insurance Society was held on May :9th at Norwich;
Mr. Ernest Hicks was in the chair.
The president aaid: We paid out in ciaims during the year a sum of £4267,287, of which £208,625 was directly due to war deaths at home and abroad. We also received notice of further claims of approximately £20,000 in respect of "missing," but I trust some of them may not materalise.
Our net new busmeas for the year amounted to £6;683,408, being only £107,904 below the corresponding figure for 1940, and represents 57 per cent, of the production of the last pre-war year of 1938. I am sure you will all agree that the new business figure represents a remarkable achieve- ment.
The gross rate of interest earned on thc whole of the society's funds was £4 6s. rd. per cent., a reduction of 21. Id. per cent, on the figure for 1940, while the net rate waF £3 75. 90. per cent., a reduction of 2s. 7d. per cent.
APPRECIATION OF SECURITIES
Turning to the balance-sheet, there was a very considerable increase in the market value of our securities which has not been brought into account, as these continue to stand at or under the middle market prices on December 31st, 1940, or December 31st, 1939, in the case of securities in enemy-occupied countries.
There is one other item—the shares or the Norwich Union Fire. You will remember that these were purchased by us in 1925 and have always appeared in our accounts at the figure of £6,088,174. At the time of our purchase the total assets of the Fire Office were £5,700,000, while at the end of last year these had increased to £7,600000. Moreover the shares carried an uncalled liability of £493,000, not reserved for, which has since been entirely discharged out of the profits of the Fire Society and the shares are fully. paid. Throughout the period we have received a gross dividend of £4 6s. 8d. per cent on out balance-sheet figure, and in these days of low interest rates you will agree that a first-class permanent investment of this magni- tude showing such a satisfactory return is extremely valuable.
The report and accounts were unanimously adopted.
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