i6o 



Insurance of Farming Stock. 



[JUNE, 



deterred by the small annual expenditure involved from securing 

 himself against loss from this cause. 



The terms and conditions on which fire insurances in Great 

 Britain are effected by all the principal insurance companies 

 are practically identical, having 'been settled by a committee 

 representative of about fifty of the leading companies in this 

 country. As some of these conditions, which are of importance 

 to insurers, are not perhaps always understood, it may be useful 

 to summarize some of the principal points. 



Conditions of Average, — The ordinary condition of average is 

 in the following terms: — *' Whenever a sum is declared to be 

 ^subject to average,' if the property covered thereby at the 

 breaking out of any fire be collectively of greater value than 

 such sum insured, then the insured shall be considered his own 

 insurer for the difference, and shall bear a rateable share of the 

 loss accordingly." 



For example: Ifproperty insured "subject to average" is insured 

 for £^00, but at the date of a fire is worth double that amount, 

 the insurer will only be able to recover one-half of the damage, 

 whatever be the amount of such damage. If the policy does 

 not state that the property is insured " subject to average/' the 

 whole amount of the damage up to the sum of £^oo can be 

 recovered. 



In policies of insurance of agricultural produce, including 

 growing crops, fruit, wool, cheese, together with manures, 

 artificial and other food for cattle, a special condition of " aver- 

 age," is generally inserted in the following terms : — 



" If the sum insured on agricultural produce, either sepa- 

 rately or in one amount with other property, shall at the break- 

 ing out of a fire be less than three-fourths of the value of all 

 the property insured in that amount, then the insured shall be 

 considered as being his own insurer for the difference between 

 the sum insured and the full value of the property insured at 

 the time of the fire, and shall bear a rateable share of the loss 

 accordingly." 



The effect of this condition is as follows : — Suppose the sum 

 insured be ;^300, and the value of all the agricultural produce 

 insured over the entire farm (together with any other pro- 

 perty insured with the agricultural produce in one amount) 



