No. 97 2nd Session, 14th Legislature, Alberta 9 Elizabeth II BILL 97 A Bill respecting a Wildlife Crop Damage Insurance Plan HON. :MR. WILLMORE ~rlnted by L. S WALL. Prlnt.·r to th.' Qu('pn's :-.ltl~t l~:-:('~~~~Iaj •. ~ty. Edmontl)l1. Alberta, 1961

Explanatory Note General. This new Act will authorize the Minister of Lands and Forests and the Alberta Hail Insurance Board to enter into an agreement to establish a wildlife crop damage insurance plan. The form of the agreement is annexed as a

Schedule to the Bill.

BILL No. 97 of 1961

An Act respecting a Wildlife Crop Damage Insurance Plan (Assented to , 1961) HER MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Alberta, enacts as follows: 1. This Act may be cited as "The Wildlife Crop Darnage Insurance Act". 2. In this Act, (a) "Agreement" means the agreement set out in the Schedule; (b) "Board" means The Alberta Hail Insurance Board; (c) "Minister" means the Minister of Lands and Forests. 3. The Minister and the, Board are hereby authorized to enter into and to execute the Agreement set out in the

Schedule to this Act, being an agreement to provide for a plan of insurance to protect persons against loss or damage to crops by wildlife. 4. The Minister and the Board may do all acts and things that are necessary for or incidental to the proper discharge of their obligations under the Agreement. 5. The Agreement may be amended at any time with the consent of the Minister and the Board. 6. This Act comes into force on the day upon which it is assented to.

SCHEDULE MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT made this day of A.D. 1961, BETWEEN: HER MAJE~~,TY THE QeEE~ in Right of the Province of Alberta, represented herein by the MINISTER OF LANDS AND FORESTS of the said Province, hereinafter called "the l'rIinister" OF THE FIRST PART AND THE ALBERTA HAIL INSURANCE BOARD, a Body Corporate with Head Office in the City of Calgar~' in the Province of Alberta, hereinafter called "the Board" OF THE SECOND

PART

2 'VHEREAS persons engaged in agriculture annually suf­ fer loss and damage to crops caused by big game animals and game birds, and

WHEREAS the Minister desires to provide the means whereby insurance may be available for insuring crops against such loss or damage, and

WHEREAS the Minister has requested the Board to act as his General Agent and in such capacity to solicit and consider applications for insurance, to issue, policies and to adjust losses and otherwise all as is hereunder set out, and

WHEREAS the Board has agreed to so act subject always to the terms, conditions and stipulations hereunder set forth,

NOW THEREFORE THIS AGREEMENT WIT­ NESSETH: 1. That the, Minister for and in consideration of the premises and the covenants, promises and agreements on the part of the Board hereunder set out, hereby appoints the Board as his General Agent to solicit and consider applica­ tions for insurance against loss or damage to crops caused by big game animals and or game birds, to issue policies and to adjust and pay losses but all subject to the restrictions, limitations and conditions hereunder set forth. 2.

That the NHnister hereby covenants, promises and agrees to and with the Board as follows, that is to say: (a,) that the Board shall be entitled to all premiums paid by applicants for insurance; (

b) that if the premium income in the year A.D. 1961 be insufficient to pay the Board's expenses of and incidental to the inauguration of the aforemen­ tioned scheme of wildlife insurance and its work as General Agent and or if in any subsequent year the said incOlne in such year be insufficient to pay the Board's expenses of and incidental to its work as General Agent, the Minister shall pay the de­ ficiency within thirty days of the receipt of state­ ment of the Board's income· and expenses in the year; (

c) that he shall forthwith upon receipt of a re­ quisition of the Board for the amount of the losses u_nder the policies issued in any year as finally ad­ justed as at the 30th day of November of the year and statement setting out the numbers of the policies in terms of which losses are payable and the amount of the award nnder each policy, forward cheque payable to the order of the Board in such amount, and in the event th:=t"t losses are adjusted subsequent to the said 30lth day of the said month of November, shall upon each further requisition for the amount of such loss~s and a like statement, forward cheque in the amount requisitioned;

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d) that he shall indemnify and save harmless the Board of, from and against any and every claim made or which shall or can be made against the Board with respect to its services as G€neral Agent of the Ministsr for the purposes h21'cin set out. 3. That the Board for and in consicel'ation of the coven­ ants on the part of the Minister herein set forth hereby covenants, promises and agrees to and "vith the Minister as hereunder set ou t, that is to say: (

a) that it shall solidt and consider application for in­ surance as before referred to and shall issue policies with respect to all such applications as may be ac­ cepted or approved; (

b) that it shall adjust as promplty as is reasonably possible each and every claim made by an insurea person; (

c) that it shall by not later than the 3rd day of De­ cember of each year advise the Minister of the ag­ gregate amount payable in terms of policies v.rith respect to loss or damage as finally adjusted as at the 30th day of November of the year, and shall at the same time forward a requisition for said amount and statement setting out the numbers of the policies in terms of which losses are payable and the amount of the award under each policy, and in the event that cbims are finally adjnsted after the said 30th day of the said month of November, shall for­ ward to the Minister a further requisition or further requisi tions for such further losses as may be payable and a statement or statements such as is referred to above, and further shall by not later than the 15th day of December of the year and pro­ vided that payment has been received of the amount requisitioned with respect to losses which have been finally adjusted as of the 30th day of the preceding month, make paynlent of said losses and with respect to losses adjusted subsequent to the said 30th day of the month mentioned, shall upon receipt of payment by the Minister of further amounts re­ quisitioned, make prompt payment of said losses; (

d) that it shall pay its local Agents a commission of ten (10) per centum of the premium charged and subject to the right to be indemnified by the Minister in the event that the premium income in any year be insufficient to pay its expenses in the year, shall pay all costs of and incidental to the issue of policies and the adjustment of claims and generally all operating charges; (

e) that it shall retain records relating to said insur­ ance for a pE:riod of three (3) years and that said records shall be available for inspection at the offices of the Board during ordinary business hours by the Minister or by any person authorized by him.

4 4. That it is mutually understood and agreed by and be­ tween the parties hereto and that each covenants, promises and agrees with the other as follows: (

a) that in this Agreement unless the context otherwise requires, "Big Game Lnimal" means Bear, Elk, Antelope or Deer; "Game Bird" means Duck, Goose or Sandhill Crane; "Insurance" means Wildlife Insurance; "Policy" means Certificate or other written evidence of a contract of Insurance; "Wildlife" means Big Game Animals and Game Birds; "Wildlife Insurance" means insurance against loss resulting from damage to crops caused by Wildlife; (

b) that the crops to be insured shall be Wheat, Oats, Barley, Flax, Rye, Field Peas, Buckwheat and Rape, and Grasses, Clover or Field Corn grown for seed, wheth,~r the same are standing or in swath or in sheaves either on the ground or in stooks but not crops in stack; (

c) that unless and until otherwise agreed the max­ imum amount of insurance shall be Ten ($10.00) Dollars per H.cre and the premium sh~dl be five (5) per centum payable with the application for in­ surance; (

d) that the application for insurance shall set forth the following particulars: (

i) the name and address of the applicant, (ii) particulars of the crops in respect of which inSUr2~J1CG is desired, setting out the kind of crop, the number of acres of each kind of crop, the legal description of the parcel or parcels of land upon which the crop or crops is or are grown and the amount of insurance per acre desired, (iii) whether the crop has suffered damage from wildlife or any other cause prior to the time of the application, (iv) the insurable interest of the applicant; (

e) that the Board shall consider each application for insurance as soon as possible after it has been re­ ceived by the Board at its offices in Calgary and shall proceed to accept or reject the application as it in its sole discretion shall deem advisable; (

f) that if an application be accepted a policy of insur­ ance shall be forwarded to the insured and that there shall be incorporated in or attached to the policy and made a part thereof, a copy of the conditions set out in

Schedule "A" at the foot hereof;

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g) that if an application be rejected the Board shall so advise the applicant and shall refund the premium paid with the application; (

h) that if an application be accepted the policy of in­ surance shall become effective at noon on the day following the date of the mailing of the application; (

i) that no application for insurance shall be accepted unless said application is dated and mailed on or be­ fore the 31st day of July of the year in which the application is submitted; (

j) that any policy issued shall be null, void and of no effect if it be found that at the time of issue the person named therein as the insured had no insur­ able interest in the crops mentioned therein. 5. That the parties hereto further agree all as set out in

Schedule "A" at the foot hereof which is hereby made a part of this Agreement. 6. That this Agreement may be terminated by either the Minister or the Board by three (3) months' notice in writing to the other party provided that the notice of termination shall not be effective unless it be given before the 31st day of January of the calendar year in which the termination is to take effect. 7. That the Board shall not assign this Agreement or any of the powers or privileges herein contained without first obtaining the written consent of the Minister.

THIS AGREEMENT shall extEnd to, be binding upon and enure to the benefit of the parties hereto and their re­ spective successors and assigns. IN WIT'NESS WHEREOF the MINISTER OF LANDS AND FORESTS has set his hand and seal and the BOARD has caused these presents to be signed by its proper officers in such behalf thereunto duly authorized and its Corporate Seal to be hereto affixed on the day and in the year first above written. ALBERTA HAIL INSURANCE BOARD MINISTER OF LANDS AND FORESTS

SCHEDULE "A" CONDITIONS OF POLICY The Alberta Hail Insurance Board, hereunder sometimes called "The General Agent" is the General Agent of the Minister of Lands and Forests with respect to wildlife in­ surance.

6 The Conditions hereunder set out shall apply to every policy of wildlife insurance. 1. Where an applicant in his application for insurance in­ correctly describes the location or the acreage of the crop to be insured to the prejudice of the Minister or knowingly misrepresents or fails to disclose in the application any material fact to be stated therein the insurance shall be void as to the item of the application in respect to which the misdescription, misrepresentation or omission is made. 2.

If the actual acreage of the crop insured under any item of a policy is found to be less than the acreage stated in the application under such item the General Agent shall refund to the applicant the premium paid on the excess acreage. 3. If the actual acreage of the crop insured under any item of a policy is found to be greater than the acreage stated in the application under such item the· General Agent shall determine the average loss and make payment on the basis of the actual acreage. 4.

No term or condition of the policy shall be· deemed to have been waived by the Minister either in whole or in part unless the vvaiver is clearly expressed in writing signed by or on behalf of the General Agent. 5. No applicant shall insure less than all of one kind (in­ cluding all varieties of that kind) of insurable crop or crops in any described legal quarter section. 6. No applicant shall be entitled to indemnity under the policy for any loss or damage which is found to he less than ten (10%) per centum of the crop upon the damaged acreage or any portion thereof.

If the loss or damage is found to be over ninety (90%) per centum of the crop said loss or dan1age will be deemed to be one hundred (100%) per centum. 7. In no event shall any sum be payable by the Minister in respect of any loss or damage: (

a) to any crop or portion thereof that is in stack or has been threshed; (

b) to any crop or portion thereof that has been pre­ viously so damaged by causes other than wildlife that such crop or such portion would not yield a profit over and above the actual cost of cutting, threshing and marketing provided that where causes other than wildlife have contributed to the damage the Minister shall be liable only for so much of the loss as is attributable to wildlife; (

c) occurring subsequent to the omission of the insured for any reason whatsoever, other than weather con­ ditions, or except as may be provided in the war­ ranties and conditions of the policy, to harvest (stack, thresh or combine) the crop when ready or any portion thereof in respect of which a claim is made;

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d) when the indemnity otherwisE; payable with respect to a claim is less than Ten ($10.00) Dollars; (

e) occurring on or before the 30th day of November next following the date of the policy unless notice of the claim is made before the 5th day of the next following month; (

I) occurring after the 30th day of November next following the date of the policy; provided, however, that if the insured notifies the G€neral Agent in writing forwarded by fully prepaid registered mail that the crop or a specified portion thereof remains uncut or unstacked by reason of weather conditions the General Agent upon being satisfied after in­ vestigation that the crop uncut or unstacked is in­ surable may treat the policy as continuing in effect. 8. When the crop insured is damaged by wildlife to the extent of ten (10 %) per centum or more: (

a) the insured shall within three (3) days after the date upon which the loss occurs send by registered mail in a prepaid cover addressed to: The Alberta Hail Insurance Board, General Agent-- Wildlife Insurance, 703 - 5th street South West, Calgary, Alberta. a notice of claim of loss in such form as may be prescribed by the General Agent; (

b) if the insured doE's not reside within two (2) miles of the land upon which the crop to which the claim relates is grown he shall furnish: (

i) the name of a person residing ,vithin two (2) miles of said parcel who will act as his repre­ sentative with respect to the claim, (ii) the legal description of the land upon which such person resides; (

c) upon receipt of claim in conformity with subsection (

a) the General Agent shall cause an adjuster to inspect the crops to which the claim relates; (

d) the adjuster shall proceed to inspect the crops and to interview the insured or in his absence his repre­ sentative, if any, and thereafter shall report to the General Agent the percentage of the damage and shall recommend the percentage of the insurance which in his opinion should be paid in respect of the damage or may recommend that the determination of the percentage of the damage and the amount payable in respect thereof be deferred to a later date; (

r) if the insnr('u fail~ to give to the General Agent the notic~' referred to in ~nb.~cction (

a) above \yithin thirty (::;0) dayg nrier the occurrence of the dam­ age to which t he notice relates he shall furnish by statuton" declaration or otherwise such proof

8 of the damage as the General Agent nlay require and shall be liable in the discretion of the General Agent to pay the costs of investigation. 9. Upon receipt of the adjuster's report: (

a) the General Agent unless the insured has approved the adjustment shall cause a copy of the report to be left with or forwarded to the insured or his representative; (

b) if the insured or his representative is dissatisfied with such report he may within five (5) days after the receipt of copy of the report send by registered letter addressed to : The Alberta Hail Insurance Board, General Agent-Wildlife Insurance, 703 - 5th Street South West, Calgary, Alberta. notice of appeal setting out the reasons for the appeal and shall with said notice forward payment in the sum of Ten ($10.00) Dollar8 for each quarter

section the crops on which are the subject of the appeal and which payment will be refunded in the event that the amount payable to the applicant is determined at an amount in excess of that reported by the adj uster ; (

c) if the insured or his representative does not send a notice of appeal within the said period of five (5) days the claim shall be determined by the General Agent on the basis of the report made by the ad­ juster; (

d) when a notice of appeal is received by The General Agent the General Agent: (

i) shall proceed without undue delay to consider statements contained therein, (ii) shall cause such further inquiries under the circumstances as it considers proper, (iii) for the purpose of such inquiry may call for further evidence which may be taken by statu­ tory declaration or otherwise as the General Agent may direct, (iv) shall thereupon either confirm the report of the adjuster or vary it in such manner as seems proper to the General Agent, (

v) the decision of the General Agent as regards the percentage of the dam2.ge suffered by the insured and the amount payable in respect thereto shall be final and conclusive. 10. If it be impossible to survey and examine the crop and assess the damage by wildlife by reason of weather conditions such survey and assessment nlay be deferred at the discretion of the General Agent to a subsequent date not later than the 1st day of May of the next following year.

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If the insured crop has suffered damage by wildlife said crop shall not be threshed or stacked until the General Agent has surveyed and examined the crop and assessed the loss or damage provided that if the crop has been stacked or threshed the Genei'aJ .A gent may pay to the insured on the basis of the evidence of dam3ge then remaining an amount no.t exceeding the amount of the premium paid under the policy and provided further that if threshing or stacking operations are undertaken and evidence of the loss be left by way of swathes or stooks on not less than five (5%) per centum of the insured acreage and which swathes or stooks must be representative of the loss over the whole of said acreage and cover a width of six (6) feet or more of the crop the General Agent may in his sale discretion acknow­ ledge the claim and the percentage of damage to the insured crop, the commercial value of the crop and other relevant matters may in such case be ascertained by reference to the portion of the crop remaining unstacked or unthreshed. 12.

Any fraudulent or wilfully false statement in the notice or claim or proof of loss shall vitiate the claim. 13. If the insured claims for loss or damage and it be found that he is not entitkd to indemnity under the terms and conditions of the policy he shall in the discretion of the General Agent be liable to pay the expense of and incidental to the survey and examination of the crop and the assessment of the damage. 14.

The policy may be cancelled by the insured if and only if it has become unprofitable to harvest and market the insured crop by reason of damage from causes other than wildlife and then only by giving written notice to that effect to thp- General Agent and the General Agent shall upon receipt of request for cancellation and surrender of the policy cancel the policy as of the date of the mailing of said request and :;;hall reful1rl the exc,~ss of the premium paid over the short term rate premium for the time the policy has bee~1 in force, the rel'centage of the premium to be re­ tained by the G8ner~1 Agent if the policy cancelled before or on the dates undermentioned being (subject to the pro­ viso at the foot hereof) as set out hereunder: Before August 1 nil August 13 to 15 50 1 '0 August 1 to 3 10~~, August 16 to 18 60~;· August 4 to 6 20~;, August 19 to 21 70~~ August 7 to 9 30~; August 22 to 2--1 80r,; August 10 to 12 40r{, August 25 to 27 90r,; provided that in the case of fall rye. fall wheat, field peas, buckwheat and rape and grasses and clov~r grown for seed the effectiYe dates shall be fifteen (15) da~'s earlier than the dates above mentioned. 15.

The amount of indemnity pa~'able shall be ~1scertained by multiplying the percentage of crop loss assessed on each parcel of land as adjusted by the lesser of:

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i) the amount of insurance per acre, (ii) ,the commercial value of the insured crop per acre. 16. Any action or other proceeding by the insured under the policy shall be against the Minister only and shall be commenced within one (1) year next following the first day upon which the crop covered by the policy suffered loss or damage by wildlife and not thereafter. 17. If the crop insured or the interest of the insured in such crop shall be assigned without the written consent of the General Agent such assignment shall not be binding upon the Minis,ter or the General Agent provided however that this condition shall not apply to change of title by suc­ cession or operation of law.

No. 97 SECOND SESSION FOURTEENTH LEGISLATURE 9 ELIZABETH II 1961 BILL

An Act respecting a Wildlife Crop Damage Insurance Plan Recei ved and read the First time ........................................ . Second time ...................................... . Third time ........................................ . HON. MR. WILLMORE Title: 1961 (14th, 2nd) Bill 97,

An Act respecting a Wildlife Crop Damage Insurance Plan