IF1.5 Good Faith and disclosure Flashcards
Define Good faith
Disclosure must be made in a reasonably clear and accessible manner.
Material representations of fact, expectation & belief must be correct (as far as you know)
Material circumstances
circumstances that underwriters need to know before accepting a particular risk
Why does good faith matter in insurance?
Insurance is intangible.
We have to trust the underwriter & the underwriter has to trust us.
Duties of the insurer when disclosing information
- only take risks they’re authorised to accept
- don’t withhold information about available discounts
- Ensure statements made regarding policy cover are true
Consumer Insurance (Disclosure and Representations) CIDRA 2012
In personal insurance, when disclosing facts you cannot misrepresent them. To do this underwriters must ask relevant questions (normally a generic set).
Marine Insurance Act 1906 (MIA 1906)
Customers must disclose all material information
Who does Consumer Insurance (Disclosure and Representations) CIDRA apply to?
Consumers, not Commercial
Consumer
Someone who takes out insurance for personal reasons
Insurance Act 2015 (IA 2015)
For commercial clients there are no standard set of questions. They have a duty to make fair presentation of any non-standard material circumstances.
Fair Presentation
- disclose every material circumstance which the insured knows or ought to know
- disclose in a clear manner
- every material representation is correct
An insured individual should know
- what they know
- what is know to the individuals responsible for their insurance
An insurer should know
- what the employees/agents know
- the information held by the insurer
- common knowledge
- the area the they are offering insurance in
In common law a personal is responsible for the acts of…
their agent. Hence, a careless misrepresentation by an agent is treated as if it had been made by the principle.
An agent is defaultly an agent of the…
consumer.
What makes an agent, an agent of the insurer?
- they are the AR of the insurer
- they collect information from the consumer with express authority from the consumer to do so
- they have authority to bind the insurer to cover.
According to the FCA the insurers must make it clear that the insured should not…
misrepresent
In common law, the duty of disclosure starts when negotiations begin and ends when…
the contract is formed (inception)
define inception
when the contract is formed.
When is the exception to:
“from the point of inception until the renewal negotiations take place there is no requirement for the insured to declare material information”
unless they effect the policy cover (effect the insurable item directly)
What are the points at which material information must be disclosed to the insurer?
- inception
- alteration
- renewal
- Ongoing is there are continuing requirements
when is the insureds duty of disclosure revived in general insurance policies?
at renewal
What is a continuing requirement?
Under contract law insurers are ensuring that the insured must update them of any material information that doesn’t directly relate to the risk.