This Volume of the AIDA Europe Research Series on Insurance Law and Regulation focuses on transparency as the guiding principle of modern insurance law. It consists of chapters written by leaders in the respective field, who address transparency in a range of civil and common law jurisdictions, along with overview chapters. Each chapter reviews the transparency principles applicable in the jurisdiction discussed. Whether expressly or impliedly, all jurisdictions recognize a duty on the part of the insured to make a fair presentation of the risk when submitting a proposal for cover to the insurers, although there is little consensus on the scope of that duty. Disputed matters in this regard include: whether it is satisfied by honest answers to express questions, or whether there is a spontaneous duty of disclosure; whether facts relating to the insured’s character, as opposed to the nature of the risk itself, are to be presented to the insurers; the role of insurance intermediaries in the placement process; and the remedy for breach of duty. Transparency is, however, a much wider concept. Potential policyholders are in principle entitled to be made aware of the key terms of coverage and to be warned of hidden traps (such as conditions precedent, average clauses and excess provisions), but there are a range of different approaches. Some jurisdictions have adopted a “soft law” approach, using codes of practice for pre-contract disclosure, while other jurisdictions employ the rather nebulous duty of (utmost) good faith. Leaving aside placement, transparency is also demanded after the policy has been incepted. The insured is required to be transparent during the claims process. There is less consistency in national legislation regarding the implementation of transparency by insurers in the context of handling claims.

What happens when contracting parties do not expressly provide for a particular situation in their agreement? Is intervention by the courts or legislature to fill gaps in contracts justified? How should those gaps be filled? This book is unique in the way it combines comparative and theoretical perspectives to provide answers to these questions. From a comparative law perspective, relatively little attention has been given to the different interpretative and gap filling techniques available in different legal systems. A comparison of the approach to contract interpretation and gap filling in England, Germany and the Netherlands is therefore provided in this book. Comparative observations are also made in light of the CISG, PECL and the Unidroit Principles for International Commercial Contracts. This book also contains a theoretical component that draws insights and inspiration from autonomy-based theories of contract, law and economics, notions of fairness and socio-legal perspectives to establish why contracting parties leave gaps in their contracts, whether intervention is justified and, if so, how gaps in contracts should be filled. The final part of this book builds on the comparative and theoretical perspectives to develop an interpretative and gap filling strategy that combines responses from contracting parties, the contracting community, the legislature and the courts.

In this volume, the Project Group "Restatement of European Insurance Contract Law" presents its Principles of European Insurance Contract Law (PEICL). These principles were submitted to the European Commission as a Draft Common Frame of Reference of European Insurance Contract Law (DCFR Insurance). The volume comprises the PEICL/DCFR Insurance, as well as translations into Czech, Dutch, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, and Spanish. It sets out the approach used by the Project Group, how the PEICL/DCFR Insurance relates to the overall DCFR, the participation of the Project Group in the CoPECL (Common Principles of European Contract Law) Network, as well as the general structure and characteristics of the PEICL/DCFR Insurance. The Project Group has also drafted the PEICL/DCFR Insurance as a model for an Optional Instrument of European Insurance Contract Law.

Description Coming Soon!

This open access volume of the AIDA Europe Research Series on Insurance Law and Regulation offers the first comprehensive legal and regulatory analysis of the Insurance Distribution Directive (IDD). The IDD came into force on 1 October 2018 and regulates the distribution of insurance products in the EU. The book examines the main changes accompanying the IDD and analyses its impact on insurance distributors, i.e., insurance intermediaries and insurance undertakings, as well as the market. Drawing on interrelations between the rules of the Directive and other fields that are relevant to the distribution of insurance products, it explores various topics related to the interpretation of the IDD - e.g. the harmonization achieved under it; its role as a benchmark for national legislators; and its interplay with other regulations and sciences - while also providing an empirical analysis of the standardised pre-contractual information document. Accordingly, the book offers a wealth of valuable insights for academics, regulators, practitioners and students who are interested in issues concerning insurance distribution.--

This casebook, which has been used as the principal text in more than one hundred law schools, contains extensive material on insurance contract formation and interpretation; insurance regulation; insurable interest and liability for bad-faith breach; property, health, life, and disability insurance; commercial general liability and directors & officers liability insurance; auto insurance; and reinsurance. The casebook gives equal emphasis to personal and commercial insurance, and reprints within the relevant chapters four standard-form insurance policies. There is new material on the interpretation of ambiguities, insurance regulation, the Affordable Care Act, directors & officers insurance, and excess coverage.