Show CATCH UP ON WAR WORK Period of Congestion and Vexatious Vexatious Vexatious Vex Vex- Delays I Is Virtual Virtually Y at an End ANSWER WITH V REAL LETTERS Strides of Great Importance Made In Bringing Insurance Business of Bureau to an Absolutely Current Basis Washington Announcement Is is' made by Director R. R G. G Jones of ot the bureau of war risk Insurance insurance ance once th that t the Insurance division of the bureau Is virtually at the en end 1 of Its period of ot congestion and consequent consequent consequent conse conse- quent dissatisfaction and vexatious delays resulting from the great grent volume volume volume vol vol- ume of work su suddenly thrown upon It by the demobilization of the armed forces during the past year ear Former service men ar are assured that they will be answered l promptly from now on with real letters Instead of with form paragraphs or unsatisfactory unsatisfactory factory form letters In all nIl cases which require detailed and specific answers This Is 19 the first time that the bureau has been In a position to give this as ns- Strides of great Importance to the millions of former service men an and 1 their relatives es an and beneficiaries have been made toward towar 1 bringing the Insurance Insurance Insurance In In- business of the bureau to an absolutely current basis In the prompt answering of man mall mi and 1 acknowledgment ment of premiums paid The records of accumulated work disposed of show conclusively s such ch an nn enormous enormous and distinctive e Improvement In the expediting expediting of the business that It Is confidently confidently con con- fi believed that within the next month the Insurance division will be giving as rapid 1 nn and 1 accurate service as os do any efficiently managed organizations organizations organizations In commercial life Catch Up on Mail Mall For example the the number number of e ed premiums which last October October- was approximately has hns just been een reduced to an average a of or orless orless orless less than one days day's work With other other oth OUI- er necessary operations In the handling handling hand han 1 ling of remittances a receipt will be besent besent besent sent out In a n few days from the date of the original receipt of the remit remit- tan tance ceo Unanswered m mall il In the Insurance division shows a reduction of approximately approximately approximately GO CO per cent from the dally daily balance of five months ago Probably It will be two or three weeks b before fore foreIt It will be possible to answer all the letters as quickly as It Is now possible to mall out receipts for premiums ItIs It ItIs Itis Is a ri matter of only a few tew weeks however however how how- ever b before rore the answering of all nU letters letters letters let let- In reference to insurance within four days of their receipt In the the bureau bureau bureau bu bu- bu- bu reau will be bc the regular practice In the meantime It is Inevitable that there e will be some Impatience on the part of those service men who In Inthe Inthe inthe the past have experienced 1 difficulty In Ina n a adjusting their Insurance matters with the bureau as a result of delay or unsatisfactory unsatisfactory unsatisfactory un un- satisfactory information but the progress ress now being ma made In Indicates conclusively conclusively con con- elusively that these vexatious cases will be cleared up spee speedily lly an and 1 that thereafter although there will alwa always s 's of necessity as ns In any large any large organization tion be occasional errors an and 1 delays In n the business In the bureau of ot war risk Insurance these difficulties will willbe willbe be reduced reduce to a n relatively Insignificant Insignificant cant minimum In or order to cope with the great flood of mall mail which came to the bureau coincident coincident co co- incident with demobilization of the arme armed 1 forces each of the letters letter requiring requiring requiring re re- re- re quiring searching of the rec records r wl which ch in many cases was done b by inexperienced inexperienced in in- n- n experienced personnel Onnel It was necessary necessary necessary sary to resort to form and paragraph letters In answering Inquiries In struggling with th tike the volume of excess mall mail which piled plied up In the bureau there e Is no rio question but that a large percentage of ot It was answered 1 improperly Improperly erly and frequently delayed j I Many Letters ft Returned turned In a l large rge proportion of the cases crises the service men themselves being unfamiliar unfamiliar un un- un- un familiar with th the necessity o of giving full Cull Information about their cases ce cel L numbers full names dates of discharge etc rendered It Impossible Impossible impossible sible to answer properly their Inqui Inqui- ries res Others failed to give proper n addresses addresses ad ad- 1 dresses with the result that numbers of letters a addressed 1 to former former former for for- mer service men mEm by the bureau are being returned by postmasters from all parts of ot the country accompanied by statements that t It Is Impossible to fin find 1 the u addressee 1 Fragmentary or Insufficient insufficient Information also Inevitably re resulted re re- suited 1 In of pr premiums premiums premi premi- ml- ml urns due clue du to lade lack of Identification Some l Idea of the enormity of the job may bo bG gained from the fact that the most recent figures show that the lie total number of applications for Insurance Insurance insurance In In- r received by the tho bureau was totaling th the pr premiums to March l 1920 1020 O totaling approximately approximately ap ap- proximately For a long period It was necessary ary for tor the bureau to typewrite all nU of Its addresses This meant reference to a record In each ench case multiplying the chances of errors and entailing an enormous amount of labor or With such an nil unprecedented 1 business n as came cane In the bureau was floo flooded with application Inquiries remittances Otc Lc tJ was a ph physical for the bureau hUren to mall mail to eneli of or If the men on Its list information Information mation matton relative to the he changes In rulings rulings rul rul- ings etc as rapidly ns as they were Issued To make even one complete mailing mUlling to each of the millions of addresses a addresses ad ad- 1 dresses and 21 at t the same time to cope with the work of th the bureau u was an un almost insuperable task Naturally much complaint developed 1 on the ground that service men were unable to get Information about what the bureau of war risk Insurance was offering offering offering of of- fering or was doing Handicaps Overcome Very serious handicaps In the addressing addressing ad ad- dressing of the men have Just been overcome Through a u special appropriation appropriation made by uy congress the bureau has been enabled to put Its entire list of ot former service men on nd resso- resso graph plates a n task which has required e ed 1 several months nn and 1 which has completely completely completely com com- monopolized the plate making section of a n a great grent factory In the bureau o of war risk Insurance Itself over nine hundred 1 people have been employed In putting the names and find ad addresses on the plates In addition to enabling th the bureau to make full mailings of Its most Important Important important Im Im- im- im Information to former servicemen service servicemen servicemen men and women the sen sending out of premium notice has hns been enormously enormous enormous- ly facilitated The Thee new system of printing both the premium notice nn and 1 the premium receipt at the same time from the ad plate and by filing the returned 1 ad notice notice no no- notice tice In place of the premium receipt to cre credit the Individual account with the remittance reduces to fo a 21 minimum the possibility of misapplication of premiums received Ad Additional safeguard safeguard safe safe- guar guard 1 rests In the fact that each a ad ad- 1 plate carries the certificate certificate certificate cate or policy number an and the amount of premium regularly due from the service man This prevents the tile errors errors errors er er- er- er that previously occurred 1 through repeated copying with a t typewriter In a n great business where there are more than thirty million records including Including In In- I eluding the names of more than fifty I thousand 1 Johnstons Johnsons etc I Ian an and 1 proportionately large numbers of Smiths nn and 1 Browns occasional errors errors errors er er- er- er an and misunderstandings were bound to develop but the out Ironing-out process is now so well wen ri under tinder der way that e even en n SUC such I discrepancies will b be rapidly rapid rapid- 1 ly Iy corrected Difficulties Reduced The promptness with which premium premium pre pre- notices can now nold lie be mailed IS IS' expected ex- ex 1 to obviate largely the difficulties ties an and 1 vexations which hitherto have been occasioned by premium notices notices notices no no- tices being mailed where the payments had alrea already y been made Prompt receipting receipting receipting re re- re- re for premiums which now Is possible and will be carried out will largely do 10 awa away with this difficulty except of course where notices sent out In a previous month are forward forward- forwarded 1 ed before the current payments could be cre credited Issuance of the Insurance policies for for- forthe the permanent converted government government government govern govern- ment life Insurance which are nrc desired desired desire de de- de- de sired sire 1 by all the men who are ore Insured has been d delayed lared pen pending the c completion completion comple comple- mple- mple tion tron which now has been passe passed The new policies are now being completed completed com com- b by the a actuarial an and 1 legal experts experts experts ex ex- and an 1 sent to the government printing office nn and 1 It Is expected that they will be mailed out before June 1 With t the e Insurance business of the bureau on a current basis it I Is now anticipated 1 that former service m mC ai l who have been deterred 1 from keeping up their Insurance by reason of the Uie delays delays de- de de lays which the they had e experienced 1 In Inthe Inthe inthe the hall handling of f their accounts will take advantage of the very liberal provisions pro pro- provisions visions s for the reinstatement of war risk insurance b by the payment of two monthly premiums and 1 a satisfactory statement of health and will get back backon on the books The new law has ma made the insurance insurance insUl ance very attractive by enlarging the list of permitted pm 1 beneficiaries to In In- In elude chide parent parent grandparent ran parent stepparent step par ent parent through adoption wife or husband child 1 gran grandchild stepchild 1 adopted child brother sister half half- brother sister half-sister brother through adoption sister through adoption stepbrother stepsister uncle aunt nephew niece law in sister sister- law In a person who has stood 1 In the relation of a n parent to the insured Insure 1 for a period of one year ear or more prior to the Insure Insured's s 's enlistment or In induction Indue tion the children of such person parent parent parent par par- ent grandparent step-parent step or parent parent parent par par- ent through adoption of the Insured's Insure wife or husband Want Permanent Forms It Is also anticipated that the provision provision pro pro- provision vision of the new law which permits sum lump-sum payments at nt the thc option o othe of the Insured Insure 1 on converted policies 01 ordinary or or- life twenty-payment twenty life thir- thir t payment ty-payment life year 20 en endowment 30 year 30 en endowment and en endowment at age oge two sixty-two will greatly Increase the number of conversions con into the permanent form of government life Insurance More than applications fo forthe for tor the conversion of war risk policies Into Into into In In- to permanent forms farms already have been received Former service ser men desiring to reinstate reInstate reInstate re- re Instate war Fisk Isk Insurance which has ha lapsed lapse 1 or been canceled or to conver convert com their nee In cases where It i inow Is Isnow isnow now In forr force should apply to any pos post i of the Am l' l can Legion the Veterans Veteran of Foreign Wars or other organizations of former service men Army Navy an and 1 Marine Corps Corp recruiting stations stations sta sta- State Insurance Commissioners loners any home service section of the American Amerl Amerlean Amer Amer- l lean ican an Red Cross Salvation Army Array Knights of Columbus Jewl Jewish h Y Welfare lare board boar 1 Y M. M C. C A. A or to other fraternal fraternal frater frater- nal of oe welfare organizations which ar arIn are In a position to furnish blanks an and necessary Information |