FIRE INSURANCE DURING THE WAR 
As a preliminary to a survey of the influence of the war 
on the business of Fire insurance some statement of the general 
principles and methods which prevailed before the war is 
required, because a knowledge of these is essential to a full 
understanding of the modifications which were brought about 
by that upheaval. 
To secure a clear understanding it is desirable at the outset 
to define the terms to be used : ‘ The Insurer’ is the person or 
body of persons which agrees to indemnify some other person 
or body of persons (called the * Insured ’) against loss or damage. 
The meaning of the word ¢ Underwriter’ is similar to that of 
Insurer’, but it implies in addition another function, namely 
the selection and rating of the risk undertaken by the Insurer. 
The term * Insurer’ is often applied to the person insured, and 
much confusion results. 
A policy of Fire insurance is not the simple contract which 
its name would seem to indicate; for one thing it does not 
indemnify the insured for damage resulting from every kind 
of fire. For many years it has been the settled practice of 
insurers to limit their responsibility to the consequences of 
fires originating from certain causes, in order to avoid the 
possibility (however remote) of being involved in a loss too great 
for their resources. The principle on which a Fire underwriter 
relies is that it is possible to estimate with reasonable accuracy 
the extreme limit of liability likely to be reached in any 
particular fire arising from what may be described as natural 
causes—that is, from accident, negligence or even malice, so long 
as that malice is not accompanied by force. Acting on that 
principle the aim of an underwriter is to limit his liability upon 
each aggregation of property exposed to the ravages of a single 
conflagration. It is hardly necessary to explain, however, that 
the rules which govern the calculations of the possible spread 
Introdue- 
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