INSURANCE (EXCLUDING MARINE INSURANCE)

from University College London

Taught by:
John Lowry and Philip Rawlings, UCL.

Introduction
While insurance law is significant in its own right it also plays a critical role in the development of other branches of the law. Insurance contracts obviously underpin commercial transactions, particularly contracts for goods and services (including consumer contracts) and international trade. Insurance law also pervades the policy issues not always openly vowed in the reasoning of the courts when deciding negligence cases and claims for breach of statutory duty.

The course is designed to provide a critical overview of key elements of the insurance contract (excluding marine insurance). Although we will not be examining marine insurance in its own right, reference will be made to the Marine Insurance Act 1906 and to the case law decided thereunder relevant to non-marine insurance contracts. Where appropriate reference will be made to developments in other common law jurisdictions (e.g. the USA, Canada and Australia) in order to see how insurance law issues may receive different judicial/legislative responses elsewhere.

Course Structure

• Elements of insurance – definitions; regulation of insurance business; voluntary controls.


• Insurable interest – indemnity; life & property policies; joint & composite insurance.


• Assignment – methods & effects of assignment; rules governing life policies.


• Formation – common law principles; commencement of the risk; cover notes; renewals.


• Conflict of laws – jurisdictional issues; the law governing insurance and re-insurance contracts.


• Reinsurance – basic principles in outline.


• Utmost good faith – the mutual duty of disclosure; misrepresentation; remedies for breach of duty.


• Terms – warranties; conditions.


• Insurance intermediaries – regulation; insurance agents; insurance brokers.


• Premiums – payment; return.


• Construction of the policy – rules of construction; specific terms.


• Causation – doctrine of proximate cause; the assured’s misconduct.


• The claims process – notification clauses; fraudulent claims; claims co-operation.


• Resolving disputes – the courts; arbitration; the Insurance Ombudsman Bureau.


• Indemnity – the indemnity principle; valued and unvalued policies; mitigation of loss and ‘due precautions’ conditions.


• Reinstatement – contractual reinstatement; reinstatement under statute.


• Subrogation – the insurer’s rights; allocation of recoveries; prejudicial conduct by the assured.


• Double insurance – effect of double insurance; contribution between insurers.


• Liability insurance – general principles; employers’ liability insurance; third party rights.


• Motor vehicle insurance – the statutory scheme; scope of motor policies.

Assessment
Assessment is by way of two components:

• An essay (5000 words max.) worth 25% of the total marks (submission date – July 1st 2005)


• An unseen examination worth 75% of the total marks.

Course texts:

• John Lowry & Philip Rawlings, Insurance Law: Cases & Materials
  (Oxford, Hart Publishing, 2004).


• John Lowry & Philip Rawlings, Insurance Law: Doctrines and Principles
  (Oxford, Hart Publishing, 1999; reprinted 2002)

Introductory reading:

Malcolm Clarke, Policies and Perceptions of Insurance
(Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1997).

Additional Reading:

John Birds, Modern Insurance Law 5th ed.
(London: Sweet & Maxwell, 2004).

Robert Merkin, Colinvaux’s Law of Insurance 7th ed
(London, Sweet & Maxwell, 1997)

John Birds, Robert Bradgate, Charlotte Villiers, Termination of Contracts
(London: Wiley Chancery, 1995).

Charles Mitchell, The Law of Subrogation
(Oxford, OUP, 1994).

Ray Hodgin, Insurance Law: Text and Materials
(London: Cavendish, 2002).

National Consumer Council, Insurance Law Reform (1997)

Reference/ Practitioners Works:

Malcolm Clarke, The Law of Insurance Contracts
(London, Informa, 2002)

Nicholas Legh-Jones et al, MacGillivray on Insurance Law 9th ed.
(London: Sweet & Maxwell, 1997) + supplements. A new edition is due November 02.

Sweet & Maxwell, CCH and Informa (LLP) also publish a range of loose leaf practitioners’ texts.

Journals:

Needless to say you are advised to regularly monitor the journals - especially Lloyd’s Maritime & Commercial, the Journal of Business Law, the Modern Law Review, the Law Quarterly Review, etc.