FIRE INSURANCE.
The present system of fire insurance has been introduced in many places by the establishment of so-called domanial fire-guilds (Domanial-Brandgilden), by which the country population on crown-lands bound themselves to mutually assist one another by furnishing thatch, and horse and hand power in the rebuilding of burned houses. Whatever was wanting after this was made up by gratuitous supplies of wood from the public forests, by the granting of governmental fire-licenses to beg (begging letters), by permission to have collections made in the churches[237c-1] etc. The next step was generally the establishment of public insurance (Landes-Assecuranz) only for houses,[237c-2] but with compulsory membership. This compulsion was justified by the continuing interest of the state in the payment of the house-tax, as well as by the interest of the eventual owner of the estate, and of hypothecation-creditors.[237c-3] [237c-4] The insurance of moveable property is much more recent, both by reason of the nature of the property itself, which becomes of importance only at a later date, and also on account of the much greater difficulty of carrying on such insurance.[237c-5] The thought of making this species of insurance compulsory, or of turning it over to the state, has seldom been suggested.
[237c-1] Thus in Austria, even after the middle of the 18th century: Schopf, L. W. des öst. Kaiserstaates, I, p. 175. In the mandate of the electorate of Saxony of Dec. 7, 1715; but the fire-fund (Feuerkasse) of 1729 depended on voluntary but regular collections, besides which it obtained certain contributions from the state and the church. Those who gave nothing, however, were threatened with getting nothing, or very little, in case of fire. Parties desiring to rebuild massively had especially much to expect. (Cod. August Forst., I, 538.) The charters of the oldest German Landesbrandkassen contain a provision that, in future, no further fire-collections shall be allowed.
[237c-2] The English Hand-in-Hand Fire Office for houses, founded in 1696; the Union Fire O., for houses and movable property, in 1714: both mutual institutions. The premium-institution, the Sun Fire Office, 1710 (Frankenberg, Europ. Herold, 1705, II, 181), mentions fire insurance as a special characteristic of England. But we may trace fire insurance on buildings and harvest supplies in the low countries about the Vistula in Prussia, even as far back as 1623. (Jacobi, loc. cit., 131.) Brandenburg fire-fund, 1705, with voluntary admittance of all houses, and fixed relation between the yearly contribution and the insurance capital. If a fire happened, the fund repaired the damage caused to the fullest extent its means allowed. (Mylius, Corp. Const. March. V., I, 174 seq.) Even in 1706, it became necessary to prohibit speaking ill of the institution. It was, therefore, abolished later. The first Würtemberg private fire insurance company, 1754, founded on similar principles, and which was still existing in 1760, had a like fate (Bergius, Polizei und Camerelmagazin, III, 40 ff.), but it was exchanged in 1773 for a mutual public company. In Berlin a mutual insurance company in 1718 (Bergius, Cameralistenbibliothek, 151); in Denmark, 1830 (Thaarup, Dän. Statist., II, 173 seq.); in Silesia,[TN 60] 1742; Calenberg-Grubenhagen, 1750; in Baden, 1758; in Kurmark, 1765; in Hildesheim, 1765; in Hesse-Darmstadt, 1777. In France, the Parisian institution of 1745 is considered the oldest. (Beckmann, Beitr. z. Gesch. d. Erfindd., I, 218.)
[237c-3] In Galenberg-Grubenhagen only the Bauerhöfe subject to the common burthens were obliged to enter, in Hildesheim, all houses subject to taxation; in Darmstadt all house-owners who were allowed only a dominium utile. In Kurmark, the subjects of the estate might be compelled to enter by their lords, but could not be kept out. Of Prussian companies in 1846, entrance was compulsory only in those of East Prussia and Posen. In Würtemberg compulsion since 1773; confirmed in 1853. Also in Zurich, Jan. 24, 1832; in Schaffhausen Nov. 27, 1835. In Berne, only for state, municipal and mortgaged houses; for the latter only so far as it was not expressly left to the creditor. Introduced into Baden in 1807, after most of the parishes (Gemeinden) had voluntarily accepted it; confirmed in 1840. The provision that at least no judicial hypothecation should be made on an un-insured house is found in the Darmstadt law of 1777, § 13, and in that of Mainz of 1780, art. I, § 15. Rau, Lehrbuch, II, § 25 a., finds compulsion in the case of property in common and in that of property belonging to other persons very appropriate. It is a matter worthy of thought, that, in cities like Berlin, Breslau, Thorn and Stettin, compulsory fire insurance is still retained. In Upper Silesia, the abolition of compulsory provisions has had for effect to cause 52 per cent. of all buildings to be insured. (Press Zeitschr, 1867, 329).
[237c-4] Question of introducing state insurance into Hungary. As a cultured land, and one rich in capital, is better adapted to insurance, it would be folly to "emancipate" ones self from Trieste, etc. in this respect. But, on the other hand, only state-insurance can attract the Hungarians and make them feel universally the want of insurance. A reconciliation of these opposing views might be effected by compelling the peasantry to insure their farm houses, and allowing complete liberty in the cities and with reference to movable property.
[237c-5] Even Bergins, Polizei und Cameralmag., III, 80, 1768 ff., doubts the possibility of the insurance of movable property. Insurance of movable property of the Evangelical clergy in the electorate of Mark, in which, however, only movable property of the value of 400 thalers is considered. But by this provision the changeableness of the object, which so facilitates fraud, was done away with. Hamburg joint-stock company for the insurance of movable property, 1779. Electorate of Saxony fire-fund for movable property, 1784-1818, which, however, made good, as a rule, only 25 per cent. of the damage caused. In Prussia, in 1814, there were only 12 insurance companies in which movable property could be insured. In the aggregate even they were but of little extent, and had generally a partnership, guild, or communal basis. (Jacobi, loc. cit, 123.) On the other hand, in 1869, there were in all the mutual insurance companies, 530,600,000 thalers worth of movable property insured, besides 2,814,800,000 thalers worth of immovable property, and 366,100,000 thalers worth of property of a mixed nature, partly movable and partly immovable. (Preuss. Statist. Zeitschr., 1876, 298.)
REQUISITES OF A GOOD SYSTEM OF FIRE INSURANCE.
Among the chief requisites of a good fire insurance system are the following: