BOOK: A Practical Guide to the Insurance Act 2015, by David Kendall & Harry Wright

Written by (reviewer) Deborah Ritchie, editor, CIR

2017-11-24

A Practical Guide to the Insurance Act 2015
David Kendall & Harry Wright, Routledge, 2017.

In the September issue of this magazine, CEO of Airmic, John Ludlow, wrote an opinion piece on the first anniversary of the publication of the Insurance Act 2015 – a ground-breaking piece of legislation that was welcomed by all. Ludlow asked if the new Act had achieved its objectives thus far, his view that in some ways it had; but in others had not.

The Insurance Act 2015 is the first comprehensive statutory reform of UK insurance law of since 1906 and introduces thorough and drastic reform of some of the core tenets of UK insurance law, including the insured’s pre-contractual duty to the insurer, and remedies for its breach; the knowledge of the insured and the insurer for the purposes of the pre-contractual duty; the effect of insurance warranties and other terms tending to reduce the risk of loss; fraudulent claims; and damages for failure to pay an insurance claim in a reasonable time.

Written by David Kendall, partner at Cooley and former chairman of the British Insurance Law Association, and Harry Wright, a barrister at 7 King’s Bench Walk; this book is a thorough introduction to the Act and is focused primarily on its impact when applied to business insurance and reinsurance. Of timely assistance not only to insurance lawyers and members of the judiciary, but also underwriters, claims handlers, brokers and buyers, this book covers each of the core changes brought about by the new legislation.

Airmic’s Ludlow said that, amongst other things, he would like to see more dialogue and more diligent underwriting at the point of placement, and that where this is happening, all parties have benefited. “The underwriter achieves more accurate pricing of risk, and the buyer achieves greater certainty of outcome,” he wrote. “The Insurance Act is a fantastic piece of legislation; let’s hope market practice evolves so all players can take full advantage of it.” This book could be a useful tool for those seeking to do just that.


This review was published in the November 2017 issue of CIR Magazine.

Download as PDF

More interviews and analysis

Contact the editor

Follow us on Twitter

Related Articles