New guide to steer buyers through insurance law changes

Airmic’s new guide on insurance efficacy is expected to clarify the pre-inception phase of insurance buying/renewing – a period from where the vast majority of misunderstandings or failures arise.

The report is due in June next year, is currently in the primary stages of research, but is intended to dovetail with the association’s suite of insurance guides to provide a full picture of the purchasing process.

The tone will be directed by the draft second bill of the Insurance Contract Law, expected next summer.

Speaking after the announcement of this project, technical director and the guide’s research lead, Paul Hopkin said: “Depending on what happens with the Law Commission’s proposals, it could be a guide to the new law or it could be a guide to what we at Airmic would like the new law to be.

“There is a whole set of principles embedded into different law that we believe are unfair to the buyer. Airmic has already produced guidance on contract wordings that remove the worst contract excesses of the existing law, such as neutralising basis clauses and penalties for non-disclosure.

“We will also be providing guidance on how not to get caught out by other arcane out-of-date principles of the existing law.”

The publication of this guide will complete the first of two stages in Airmic’s project to assist its members with effective insurance buying. The next stage would be to produce digital guides. “It’s appropriate to plug gaps in the guidance that we provide and then look to make a clever searchable interactive guidance that sits on online. This will be stage two of what we’re seeking to do. Stage one is to complete the suite of guides in time for the conference next year,” said Hopkin.

“I hope that risk managers that are new to the role of insurance buying will find it a valuable training tool, whilst those with more experience will find it a useful point of reference,” he added.