§ Mr. MARKHAMasked the President of the Board of Trade if he will say why the Registrar of Public Companies sanctioned the registration of the title the Law Car and General Insurance Corporation when a company of good standing was already on the register named the Car and General Insurance Corporation; and if he will consider the desirability of taking steps to prevent the registration of new companies having names similar to those of existing companies?
2755W
Mr. BUXTONUnder the provisions of the Companies (Consolidation) Act, 1908, the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies can only refuse to register a company under a particular name if that name so nearly resembles the name by which a company in existence is already registered as to be calculated to deceive. In the case of the Law Car and General Insurance Corporation, I presume that the Registrar considered that the addition of the word "Law" at the beginning of the title was sufficient to distinguish the company from the Car and General Insurance Corporation, and I may add that this distinction has been found sufficient in other cases. Every care is taken to prevent the registration of new companies with names so closely resembling those of existing companies as to cause confusion.
§ Mr. MARKHAMasked the President of the Board of Trade whether the Law Car and General Insurance Corporation have replied to his communication respecting their failure to deposit the sum of £20,000 under the Assurance Companies Act of 1909, and, if not, what steps he proposes to take, seeing this company issued a prospectus on 25th February, 1910, stating that they required this money for the purposes of lodging this deposit to enable them to transact assurance business; and whether he is aware that the company received a large sum of money for this purpose from the public?
Mr. BUXTONIt appears from the file of the company at Somerset House that a considerable sum of money has been received by the Law Car and General Insurance Corporation, Limited, as a result of the issue of the prospectus referred to by my hon. Friend. I have received a reply to my communication from the company, and I am sending my hon. Friend a copy of the letter.