Double insurance and contribution
Produced in partnership with Susie Wakefield of Shoosmiths
Practice notesDouble insurance and contribution
Produced in partnership with Susie Wakefield of Shoosmiths
Practice notesOverlapping insurance polices
There are various reasons why an insured may end up with overlapping insurance cover, whether deliberately or otherwise.
Examples include the situation where the insured takes the benefit of other insurance arranged by another party or where, in the commercial world, risk managers may be unaware of prior insurances effected by predecessors in their role.
Similarly, an insured may inadvertently take out insurance in respect of specific property without realising that the property is already covered by an existing Policy with a broader Scope of cover. Alternatively, the insured may simply wish to increase its amount of cover or, conceivably, to protect itself against the risk of its insurers becoming insolvent.
There is no common law requirement to avoid double insurance. Insureds may insure an insurable interest as many times under as many policies as they wish (Godin v London Assurance (1758) 1 Burr. 489 (not reported by LexisNexis®); Albion Insurance Co Ltd v Government Insurance Office of New South Wales (1969) 121 C.L.R. 342) (not reported by LexisNexis®). Nor is there any common
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