1911. subject to the provisions of the scheme, but the Insurance Commissioners s. 26-27. shall not approve any such scheme unless they are satisfied that the members of the society have been given an opportunity of voting by ballot thereon, and that the scheme makes proper provision for safeguarding existing rights and interests. 26.—(1) Every approved society and every society desirous of becoming Security to be an approved society shall give such security as the Insurance Commis- given by approved sioners may consider sufficient to provide against any malversation or societies. misappropriation (a) by officers of the society of any funds coming to the hands of the society under this Part of this Act, and in determining the amount of the security to be required the Commissioners shall have regard to the amount of the funds so coming into the hands of the society: Provided that no security shall be required from any society which proves to the Insurance Commissioners that the only funds coming into the hands of the society under this Part of this Act are such funds as are required for reimbursing to the society sums previously expended by the society under this Part of this Act. (2) In the case of an approved society with branches having insured persons among their members, security shall be given in respect of each such branch by the society. (3) The Insurance Commissioners may from time to time vary the amount of security to be given or maintained by an approved society as may be thought proper, and, where security is given by way of deposit of securities, the society which made the deposit may, with the consent of the Insurance Commissioners, substitute other securities for the securities for the time being deposited. (4) Any dividends or interest arising from securities deposited by an approved society under this section shall be paid to the society. 27. (1) Every approved society shall, as respects the administration Provisions as of the affairs of the society under this Part of this Act, make proper to approved provision by rules to the satisfaction of the Insurance Commissioners for societies. the government of the society, and if a society with branches (a) for the government of the society and its branches; (b) for the determination of disputes arising between the society (d) for the keeping of proper books of account by the branches in (e) for depriving of or suspending from the right of administering (2) Every approved society and every branch thereof shall comply with any regulations made by the Insurance Commissioners as to the place in which meetings are to be held, and those regulations may provide for (a) See also the provisions of Section 30 of the National Health Insurance Act, 1918 (p. 113), which empower the Insurance Commissioners, for the purpose of providing against maladministration, to make regulations for the application to approved societies, to branches of approved societies, and to officers and members thereof, of the provisions of Sections 35 and 55 of the Friendly Societies Act, 1896, and any of the other provisions of the Friendly Societies Acts, 1896 to 1908, relating to offences, penalties and legal proceedings. (b) As regards the infliction of penalties upon, or the taking of legal proceedings against, a branch of an approved society which is guilty of maladministration, see the provisions of Section 30 of the National Health Insurance Act, 1918 (p. 113); and as regards the withdrawal of recognition in the case of such a branch, see Section 43 (2) of that Act (p. 116). 1911. s. 28-30. the use for such meetings, with or without payment, of any offices or other buildings under the control of a Government department (including offices or buildings occupied by or in connection with a labour exchange) or belonging to or under the management of a local authority, but subject to the consent of the Government department or the local authority concerned. Secessions, &c. Withdrawal of approval. Admission of insured persons to membership in approved societies. (3) Where under any Act regulating the constitution of an approved society the rules of the society are required to be registered, any rules approved under this section by the Insurance Commissioners shall forthwith be registered, but until so registered shall have effect as if they had been duly registered. 28. (1) No branch of an approved society having insured persons among its members shall be entitled to secede or withdraw from the society without the consent of the Insurance Commissioners (a); but such consent shall not be given unless the seceding or withdrawing branch complies with the conditions of approval requisite in the case of approved societies, and, on any such consent being given, the branch shall be subject in all respects to the provisions and requirements of this Part of this Act relating to approved societies : Provided that such consent shall not be required if the branch makes provision to the satisfaction of the Insurance Commissioners for the transfer to other approved societies or to other branches of the society from which it is seceding or withdrawing of such of its members as are insured persons. (2) An approved society or a branch thereof shall not be dissolved without the sanction of the Insurance Commissioners, and any such dissolution, so far as it affects members who are insured persons, shall be carried out in the prescribed manner (a). (3) No branch of an approved society shall be expelled from the society, unless proper provision is made to the satisfaction of the Insurance Commissioners with respect to any members of the branch who are insured persons (a). (4) This section shall have effect notwithstanding anything contained in any Act regulating the constitution of the society. 29.-Where an approved society or a branch of any approved society fails to comply with any of the provisions or requirements of this Part of this Act relating to approved societies, or where such a society or branch or the body of which the society forms a separate section is convicted of any offence under any Act regulating its constitution or under any other Act, the Insurance Commissioners may withdraw their approval, and thereupon the society shall cease to be an approved society and the Insurance Commissioners shall make such provision as they may consider necessary with respect to members of the society who are insured persons (b). Membership of Approved Societies and Transfer of Members. (2) An approved society shall be entitled, in accordance with its rules, (a) See now First Schedule (B) to the National Insurance Act, 1913 (p. 86) as respects the dissolution of approved societies, and Part I. (1) (c) and (2) of the Fourth Schedule to the National Health Insurance Act, 1918 (p. 120), as respects the secession, expulsion or dissolution of branches of approved societies, and the arrangements to be made for administering the benefits of members of branches so seceding, dissolving or being expelled. (b) See now First Schedule (c) to the National Insurance Act, 1913 (p. 86), and Section 43 (2) of the National Health Insurance Act, 1918 (p. 116). 1911. insured persons: Provided that no such application shall be refused solely s. 31–33. on the ground of the age of the applicant (a) (b). (3) This section shall come into operation on the passing of this Act. 31.-[This Section, which contained provisions as to transfers from one approved society to another, was repealed by Section 48 (4) of the National Health Insurance Act, 1918 (p. 117). For provisions as to the termination of membership of an approved society, the transfer of members from one approved society or branch to another approved society or branch, the calculation of the appropriate transfer values, and the special conditions governing transfers from societies which are in deficiency, see now Sections 14 and 21 of that Act (pp. 100 and 106).] colonial societies. 32.-(1) If an insured person ceases to be permanently resident in the Transfers to United Kingdom and becomes a member of any society or institution foreign and established in a British possession or foreign country, of a kind similar to an approved society, which is approved by the Insurance Commissioners, or of any branch established outside the United Kingdom of an approved society, the transfer value of such person, or, in the case of a deposit contributor, the amount standing to his credit in the Deposit Contributors Fund (c), shall be paid to such society or institution or branch; but no such payment shall be made unless the Insurance Commissioners are satisfied that the society, institution, or branch in question gives corresponding rights to any of its members becoming resident in the United Kingdom. (2) Where an arrangement has been made with the Government of any British possession or with the Government of any foreign State, whereby insured persons may be transferred to a society or institution established in the British possession or foreign State similar to an approved society or the Deposit Contributors Fund (c), and members of any such society or institution may be transferred to approved societies or to the Deposit Contributors Fund (c), it shall be lawful for the Insurance Commissioners to make such arrangements as may be necessary for any such transfer as aforesaid, and for the determination of the amount to be transferred in any such case, and of the rights to which any person transferred is to be entitled; so, however, that nothing in this section shall affect the rights of a society under this Part of this Act to refuse applications for membership. emigrants who remain 33.-If a person who has for not less than five years been a member Transfer of an approved society for the purposes of this Part of this Act has ceased values of permanently to reside in the United Kingdom, and does not join such a society, branch, or institution as is in the last foregoing section mentioned, members of and the approved society is willing to permit him to remain a member approved of the society and to become entitled to benefits independently of this Act, societies. the society may, subject to regulations by the Insurance Commissioners, transfer from the account of the society under this Part of this Act to the credit of the society independently of this Act such sum as would have been transferred to the Deposit Contributors Fund (c) had the member ceased to be a member of the society and become a deposit contributor, and so much of any reserve value which may have been credited to the society in respect of him as would in such a case have been cancelled shall be cancelled. (a) Section 14 (6) of the National Health Insurance Act, 1918 (p. 102) provides that where an insured person, who is not a member of an approved society, delivers to such a society, or to a duly appointed agent thereof, an application in proper form for admission to the society and is not notified by the society within a period of three months that his application has been rejected, he is to be deemed to have been admitted a member of the society as from the date of the delivery of the application. (b) Section 18 (1) (b) of the National Health Insurance Act, 1918 (p. 104) provides that regulations to be made under that Section may empower an approved society to terminate membership in any case where a member's arrears are in excess of the number to be prescribed by those regulations. (c) See footnote (c) on p. 27. 1911. s. 34-35. Prohibition against double insurance. Approved societies to keep proper accounts. 34. A person shall not be or attempt to become a member for the purposes of this Part of this Act of more than one approved society at the same time, or, being a deposit contributor, to become at the same time a member for the purposes of this Part of this Act of an approved society, but nothing in this Act shall prevent any person who is a member of an approved society under this Part of this Act becoming a member of the same or any other society independently of this Act, or prevent a deposit contributor becoming a member of any society independently of this Act, or affect the right of an approved society to reject or expel from membership any person not being an insured person, or the rights or liabilities of an approved society or of any member thereof arising otherwise than under this Part of this Act; and, subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act, all rules made by a society which becomes an approved society or any branch thereof shall remain and be of the same force and effect as though this Act had not been passed. Accounts: Valuations: Surplus and Deficit. 35.-(1) Every approved society and every branch of an approved society must(a) Keep its books and accounts under this Part of this Act separate from all other books and accounts of the society or branch (a), and in such form as may be prescribed by the Insurance Commissioners, and, when required, submit them to audit (b) by auditors to be appointed by the Treasury; (b) Submit to have its assets and liabilities under this Part of this Act valued in accordance with the provisions of this Part of this Act; (c) In the event of a surplus or deficiency being shown upon any such valuation, comply with the provisions relating to surpluses and deficiencies hereinafter contained; (d) Render such returns as the Insurance Commissioners may require. (2) Regulations made under this section shall provide for a separate account being kept showing the amount expended on administration (a), and for limiting the amount which may be carried to that account out of the contributions under this Part of this Act, and for requiring any deficiency in such account (if not otherwise defrayed) to be met forthwith by a special levy (c). (3) The provisions of this Part of this Act relating to accounts audit (b) valuation and returns shall, as respects the transactions of any approved society or branch thereof under this Part of this Act, be substituted for such of the provisions of any Act regulating the constitution of the society or branch as deal with the like matters. (a) See now Section 17 of the National Health Insurance Act, 1918 (p. 103), which empowers the Insurance Commissioners, with the consent of the Treasury, by regulations to authorise : (i) In the case of certain approved societies and branches, which carry on private as well as State insurance business, the establishment of a joint administration account, from which the expenses (or part thereof) of administering both the State and the private side of the Society's work can be met, or the payment of all or part of the amount available for State side administration to the private side administration account in consideration of the whole or part of the State side administration expenses being defrayed out of that account (Section 17 (a) and (e)); (ii) The charging to its administration account of sums improperly paid by an approved society on account of benefits, so far as not recovered or treated as benefit expenditure (Section 17 (d) and (e) ). (b) Regulations to be made under Section 17 of the National Health Insurance Act, 1918 (p. 103) may provide that the provisions of this Section as to audit shall not be applicable to approved societies carrying on private as well as State insurance business which establish a joint administration account, or which arrange for the State side administration expenses to be defrayed out of the private side accounts in the manner indicated in footnote (a) above. (c) As regards the carrying forward of a deficiency in the administration account of an approved society or branch which is shown to be due to war conditions, seo Section 17 (c) of the National Health Insurance Act, 1918 (p. 103); and for provisions as to the imposition of penalties on members of a society or branch who fail to pay any levy which they are liable to pay, see Section 17 (b) of that Act (p. 103). 1911. (4) In the case of a society or branch transacting other business besides s. 36-37. that of insurance business under this Part of this Act, all funds and credits of the society or branch under this Part of this Act shall be as absolutely the security of the members for the purposes of this Part of this Act as if they belonged to a society or branch carrying on no other business than such insurance business, and shall not be liable for any contracts of the society or branch for which they would not have been liable had the business of the society or branch been only that of such insurance, and shall not be applied directly or indirectly for any purposes other than those of insurance business under this Part of this Act (a). Where a separate section of a society has been established and such separate section is an approved society under this Part of this Act, the expression "society" in this subsection means the society of which the separate section has been established and not the separate section. 36. (1) A valuation of the assets and liabilities arising under this Valuations of Part of this Act of every approved society and of every branch of an approved societies. approved society shall be made by a valuer, to be appointed by or with the approval of the Treasury, at the expiration of every five years (b) dating from the commencement of this Act, or at such other times as the Insurance Commissioners appoint; the times so appointed may be at shorter or longer intervals than five years (b) and at regular or irregular intervals, and may apply to all approved societies or any particular society or societies. (2) Every such valuation shall be made on such basis as may be prescribed. 37.—(1) If upon any such valuation a surplus (certified by the valuer Surplus. to be disposable) is found, the following provisions shall apply: (a) If the society is not a society with branches, the society may (b) [Repealed by Section 5 of the National Health Insurance Act, (c) If, on the valuation of a branch of an approved society, a (d) If, at any time after a scheme submitted by a society or branch (2) A scheme made under this section may prescribe the conditions to be complied with as respects any additional benefit conferred by the scheme, and every such scheme shall, so far as practicable, provide for (a) But see now footnote (a) on preceding page. (b) Substituted for "three years" by Sections 3 (8) and 5 of the National Health Insurance Act, 1918 (pp. 96 and 97). (c) For the omission of certain words which were formerly inserted here, see Section 5 of. and the Second Schedule to, the National Health Insurance Act, 1918 (pp. 97 and |