Insurance Contract Law Research Articles

Following English Footsteps? An Empirical Study of Singapore's Reported Insurance Judgments and Disputes between 1965 and 2012

This article presents an empirical study of the development of Singapore’s insurance contract law in relation to English law. The gene of Singapore’s insurance law is very English. The empirical data show a lack of momentum in driving insurance law forward by case law. This may justify further legislative reform to address not only the known doctrinal issues inherited from English law but also the specific problems facing consumer insurance. Singapore’s competitiveness in the global insurance market will be an instrumental factor to determine how far Singapore continues to follow English law in the future.

Unfair clauses and Principles of European Insurance Contract Law

Provisions of Principles of European Insurance Contract Law regarding the unfair clauses are analyzed in the paper. The author has come from the importance of definition of unfair clause to the raising of standards of protection of insured as weaker party to the contract of insurance. The central part of the work is devoted to the analysis of unfair clause form the point of view of Principles as well as to the differences between the concept of Principles and concept of Directive on unfair contract terms in contracts concluded with consumers. French law is stressed as an example of inconsistency between consumer law and insurance contract law. There are two clauses of insurance contract: clause of resolution of contract after the realization of risk insured and clause of loss of protection because of late declaration of risk insured. The author proposes the introduction of article on unfair clauses in insurance contracts into the preliminary draft of Serbian Civil Code.

‘That wicked rule, that evil doctrine … ’: Reforming the Law on Disclosure in Insurance Contracts

The Consumer Insurance (Disclosure and Representations) Act 2012, which abolishes the consumer assured's duty to volunteer information, heralds the first successful outcome of the English and Scottish Law Commissions current insurance contract law reform project. This paper outlines the defects of the common law duty of disclosure which the Law Commissions sought to address. It goes on to consider why previous legislative attempts failed, the self‐regulatory measures introduced by the insurance industry as a means of resisting earlier pressure for statutory intervention, and how that resistance broke down. Finally, it examines the scope of the 2012 reforms and the current consultation being undertaken in respect of the duty of disclosure in relation to business insurance. It concludes by assessing the significance of the statute in providing a necessary impetus for future insurance law reforms.

Does the insurance premium payment regulation as stipulated in the Principles of European Insurance Contract Law protect policyholders sufficiently enough?

Does the insurance premium payment regulation as stipulated in the Principles of European Insurance Contract Law protect policyholders sufficiently enough?

Alberta’s Insurance Amendment Act: Meaningful Change or a Long Arrow with a Short Bow?

A litigator I used to work with had a way with metaphors. He once described a legal argument as being a “long arrow with a really short bow” — the implication being that, while impressive and even intimidating at first instance, the argument really did not “fly” and failed to advance the law in a meaningful way. This description came to mind when the Alberta government announced last year that the major components of the province’s long-awaited Insurance Amendment Act would take effect on 1 July 2012. Are the modifications contained in this statute worth the years of anticipation and consultation, or are the changes implemented by the legislation less significant for insurance contract law than the long reform process would suggest? In other words, does the statutory amendment achieve meaningful change by effectively addressing pressing insurance contract issues, or is this reform just a long arrow with a short bow?

Problem Questions of Insurance Contract Regulation in Latvia

This paper reviews significant defects of Latvian Insurance Contract Law arising from its drafting procedure and interrelation with other laws. Particular attention is paid to the out-dated approaches contained in this law, and the paper discusses them in conjunction with approaches developed in other European countries, including neighboring countries. The paper challenges inclusion of regulations of insurance contract in the above mentioned separate law and instead proposes its inclusion in the Civil Law of the Republic of Latvia, and provides grounds for such proposal.

A Comparative Analysis of Korean Insurance Contract Law Amendment and Chinese Insurance Contract Law

A Comparative Analysis of Korean Insurance Contract Law Amendment and Chinese Insurance Contract Law

About Sanctions and the Hybrid Nature of Modern Insurance Contract Law

markdownabstract__Abstract__ Traditionally, insurance contract law was characterised by radical punitive sanctions, governed by an 'all-or-nothing' logic. This logic has changed as a result of an incorporation of a consumerist approach: more and more, punitive sanctions, have been replaced by more proportionate ones, misbehaviour is only sanctioned insofar as it has caused the insured event to happen, duties and sanctions have been bilateralised, and sanctions are now limited to those instances where a high degree of intention or culpability can be detected. Ultimately, these changes have accounted for the hybrid nature of modern insurance contract law as a move away from business law towards consumer law.

Proportionality in the New German Insurance Contract Act 2008

markdownabstract__Abstract__ In 2008, the German legislature enacted a completely revised Insurance Contract Act, in which a new rule of proportionality replaced the former all-or-nothing principle for questions of liability. This article outlines the reasons for this shift and the impact of the rule of proportionality on insurers and policyholders. It also addresses the criticisms raised regarding the new system as well as some of the technical problems arising in its application, for example, with regard to placement of the burden of proof. This is followed by a short discussion of the rule as it is traditionally applied in Switzerland and as it is adopted in the Principles of European Insurance Contract Law (PEICL).

Late Payment of Insurance Money

markdownabstract__Abstract__ The question of damages for failure to pay sums due came before the House of Lords in 2007 in the Sempra case. Although not the main ground of the decision, the House stated that a claimant would succeed, if the claimant satisfied the usual tests of 'remoteness' of loss. The article shows how difficult and thus expensive it is to reach what to most is an obvious result, underlining the importance of particular judges, and that counsel need to 'know' the judges before whom they argue a case. People might well conclude that the Sempra ruling covers failure by insurers to pay insurance money on time. The article explains why it does not, with reference to leading cases, including those supporting a bizarre rule of English insurance contract law concerning the nature of insurance cover. The article then considers the likely response to the issue in other countries of common law, and how it might be seen in Europe. The article concludes that English law needs reform - not new precedent, but new legislation, and the chance that through current work at the Law Commission, this will occur.

Policyholder Obligations After an Insured Event: Are Baltic Insurance Laws Too Insurer-Friendly Compared to the Principles of European Insurance Contract Law?

We’ve built this digital research platform to provide academics everywhere with fast, stable and secure digital access to our library of over 110,000 scholarly books and 800,000 journal articles. We’ve tested the platform in close cooperation with leading academic institutions. If you have any questions or you notice something doesn’t quite work as it should, please visit our <a href="/publishing/faq?lang=en" class="text-primary">Help/FAQ</a> page and let us know.

ヨーロッパ保険契約法原則（PEICL）の生成と展開

本稿は，ヨーロッパ保険契約法原則（PEICL）を取り上げ，その生成過程と具体的内容に関する展開部分を考察する。もともと保険契約法は，EUの各加盟国において制定されているが，一般契約法と異なり，保険契約者等の保護のために強行法規定を設けている場合が多い。そのために，EU加盟国における保険契約法の調整は，抵触法上の問題を含めて非常に困難になることが予想されるが，その予想に反して，近年ヨーロッパ保険契約法プロジェクト・グループによりPEICLが策定された。この成果は，いわばヨーロッパの保険法研究者の英知の結晶であり，その意味ではヨーロッパの各保険契約法の考察に際してPEICLの参照は避けられない。ここにPEICLを検討する本稿の意義がある。たしかにArmbruster教授の指摘のように，撤回期間を定めるPEICL第2：302条は解釈上不要であるなど，問題点は残されているが，全体としては今後のEUの保険契約法に多大な影響を及ぼすことがあることを指摘して結論とする。

Significance of the Principles of European Insurance Contract Law for the pre-contractual information duty: Experience of the Baltic States

Significance of the Principles of European Insurance Contract Law for the pre-contractual information duty: Experience of the Baltic States

Insurance ‘‘Insurance Contract Law Reform: Consumer Insurance - Disclosure and Representations’’

<i>Insurance</i> ‘‘Insurance Contract Law Reform: Consumer Insurance - Disclosure and Representations’’

Reform of Insurance Contract Law

Reform of Insurance Contract Law

Principles of European Insurance Contract Law

Principles of European Insurance Contract Law

Do Insurers Have to Pay for Bad Behaviour in Settling Claims? Legal Aspects of Insurers' Wrongful Claims Handling

Abstract: This article presents a comparative legal analysis of wrongful claims handling by insurance companies in indemnity and liability insurance. From the outset, it is clear that it may be difficult to draw the line between legitimate claims denial and refusal to pay, on the one hand, and malicious protraction, procrastination and rejection of valid claims, on the other hand. Therefore, it is interesting to find that European legal systems diverge considerably in their stance against wrongful claims handling. In some legal systems, the issue of wrongfulness does not seem to play a significant role. There, the focus is on less value-laden concepts such as delay, default and the imputability of the delay. The result is that, at some point in time, statutory interest may become due. Sometimes, additional damages may be claimed as well. In other legal systems, ‘bad faith’ is considered a special category for all insurance contracts, allowing an escape from the limited amounts paid by way of interest. Again other legal systems seem to regard the obligation to pay interest as the only consequence of wrongful claims handling. The analysis of the different approaches towards wrongful claims handling shows that there are different solutions not only across legal systems but also within jurisdictions. Tort law and insurance law may have to compete with alternative sources of law such as insurance business regulation. Given the wide variety of positions, the Principles of European Insurance Contract Law (PEICL) seem to go beyond merely restating the current common core.

Principles of European Insurance Contract Law (PEICL), prepared by the Project Group Restatement of European Insurance Contract Law, edited by Jürgen Basedow, John Bird

<i>Principles of European Insurance Contract Law (PEICL)</i>, prepared by the Project Group Restatement of European Insurance Contract Law, edited by Jürgen Basedow, John Bird

An Optional Instrument for European Insurance Contract Law

Utrecht Journal of International and European Law (previously Merkourios) is an Open Access, peer-reviewed, student-led law journal, focusing on international and European law.The journal aims to contribute to legal scholarship on international and European law by promoting these fields' progressive development and providing an international forum for interaction between academia, practitioners and students.

A Study on Common Frame of Reference(CFR) and The Principles of European Insurance Contract Law(PEICL)-Information Duty of Insurer on PEICL-

A Study on Common Frame of Reference(CFR) and The Principles of European Insurance Contract Law(PEICL)-Information Duty of Insurer on PEICL-