ARSURANCE on lives, secures a sum of money to be received on the extinction of any life, in consideration of all annual premium paid to the assurer during the continuance of the life. Such assurances are made for a given term or years, or during the whole continuance of the life, or the joint continuance of two lives; and as they are of great utility to persons having life incomes or life estates, and as collateral securities, in many cases, for money borrowed, this species of assu rance, as it has become more generally understood, has likewise greatly increas ed. In 1790 there were only three socie ties in London which made assurances on lives ; in 1807 there were ten offices for transacting such business. These offices all require nearly the same annual premi ums, of which the following are a speci men.
Ale. 1 Year. 7 Years. Whole Life, L. s. (1 L. s. d. L. a. d. 10 . . 0 17 9 .. 1 1 5 .. 1 17 11 15 . . 0 17 11 . . 1 2 11 . . 1 18 7 20 . . 1 7 3 ..1 9 5 . 2 3 7 25". . 1 10 7 . . 1 12 1 .. 2 8 1 30 . . 1 13 3 . . 1 14 11 . . 2 13 5 35 . . 1 16 4` . . 1 18 10 . . 2 19 8 40 . . 2 0 8 . . 2 4 1 . . 3 711 45 . . 2 6 8 . . 2 10 10 . . 3 17 11 50 . . 2 15 1 .3 0 8 . . 4 10. 10 55 . . 3 5 0 . . 3 12 0 . . 5 6 4 60 . . 3 18 1 . 4 7 1 . . 6 7 4 65 .. 4 15 2 . . 5 10 10 . 7 16 9 67 . 5 5 6 . . 6 5 2 . . 8 12 1 These rates are computed from the probabilities of life, according to the Northampton bills of mortality; the mode of them is explained by Dr. Price, in his Treatise on Reversionary Payments, and by Mr. Morgan, in a very useful work, entitled " The Doctrine of Annuities and Assurances on Lives and Survivorships, stated and explained."
Persons who are engaged in military or naval service, or who have not had the small-pox, or are subject to the gout, are charged an additional premium, supposed to be adequate to the additional risk.
Policies of assurance on lives gene rally contain clauses to the following ef fect.
Conditions of assurance made by per sons on their own lives.—The assurance to be void, if the person whose life is as sured shall depart beyond the limits of Europe, shall die upon the seas, (except in his Majesty's packets, passing between Great Britain and Ireland ;) or shall en ter into, or engage in, any military or na val service whatever, without the pre vious consent of the assurers ; or shall die by suicide, duelling, or the hand of jus tice ; or shall not be, at the time the assu rance is made, in good health.
Conditions of assurances made by per sons on the lives of others.—The assu rance to he void, if the person whose life is assured shall depart beyond the limits of Europe, shall die upon the seas, (ex cept in his Majesty's packets passing between Great Britain and Ireland ;) or shall enter into, or engage in, any milita ry or naval service whatever, without the previous consent of the assurers ; or shall not be, at the time the assurance is made, in good health.
Any person making an assurance on the life of another must be interested therein, agreeable to Act of 14th of Geo. III. chap. 48, which prohibits wagering, or speculative insurances.