Insurance WAEC

Insurance Contracts

Muhtasari

Every policy you will ever study begins life as a contract, and a contract is nothing more than a promise the law is willing to enforce. Before an insurer pays a single naira, before indemnity or subrogation or any other principle can bite, there must first be a valid agreement between two parties. Get the foundation wrong and the whole policy can collapse as if it never existed.

In this lesson you will learn exactly what an insurance contract is and how it differs from buying bread or hiring a taxi, who the two parties are and what each must do, and the six essentials the law demands before it will call an agreement binding: offer, acceptance, consideration, capacity, legality and consent. You will then meet the one feature that sets insurance apart from almost every other contract in commerce, the duty of the utmost good faith, and learn to test any arrangement and say whether it truly holds.

Malengo

  1. Define an insurance contract and distinguish it from other commercial contracts
  2. Identify the parties to an insurance contract and state the role of each
  3. Explain the essential features of a valid contract: offer, acceptance, consideration, capacity, legality and consent
  4. Apply the essential features to determine whether a given insurance arrangement is legally valid
  5. Explain why an insurance contract is described as a contract of the utmost good faith

Ramani ya mawazo

Mada hii imechorwa ili uone jinsi mawazo yanavyounganika.

Kadi za kumbukumbu

Mazoezi ya haraka ya kumbukumbu kuhusu kinachopimwa katika mada hii.

Maelezo ya Somo

A young driver in Ibadan fills in a form, hands over ₦35,000 and drives away believing he is insured. Three weeks later he dents another car and makes a claim, only to be told there is no contract at all. How can that be, when he paid his money and holds a receipt? The answer lies in the rules that turn a loose arrangement into a binding contract. Money changing hands is not enough. A valid insurance contract has parts that must all be present, and if even one is missing the agreement is empty. Master these rules and you can look at any insurance arrangement and say, with confidence, whether the law will stand behind it.

Tathmini ya Somo

Hongera kwa kukamilisha somo la Insurance Contracts. Sasa kwa kuwa umechunguza dhana na mawazo muhimu, ni wakati wa kuweka ujuzi wako kwa mtihani. Sehemu hii inatoa mazoezi mbalimbali maswali yaliyoundwa ili kuimarisha uelewaji wako na kukusaidia kupima ufahamu wako wa nyenzo.

Utakutana na mchanganyiko wa aina mbalimbali za maswali, ikiwemo maswali ya kuchagua jibu sahihi, maswali ya majibu mafupi, na maswali ya insha. Kila swali limebuniwa kwa umakini ili kupima vipengele tofauti vya maarifa yako na ujuzi wa kufikiri kwa makini.

Tumia sehemu hii ya tathmini kama fursa ya kuimarisha uelewa wako wa mada na kubaini maeneo yoyote ambapo unaweza kuhitaji kusoma zaidi. Usikatishwe tamaa na changamoto zozote utakazokutana nazo; badala yake, zitazame kama fursa za kukua na kuboresha.

  1. The two parties to an insurance contract are the: A. Agent and the broker B. Insured and the insurer C. Proposer and the loss adjuster D. Underwriter and the reinsurer Answer: B
  2. In insurance, a completed and submitted proposal form is best regarded as: A. An invitation to treat B. An acceptance C. An offer D. A counter offer Answer: C
  3. Which of the following is NOT an essential feature of a valid insurance contract? A. Offer and acceptance B. Consideration C. Salvage D. Legality Answer: C
  4. The consideration provided by the insurer in an insurance contract is the: A. Premium B. Promise to pay a valid claim C. Proposal form D. Sum insured Answer: B
  5. An agreement to insure goods that are being smuggled into the country is: A. Valid and enforceable B. Voidable at the insurer's option C. Void for lack of legality D. Binding once the premium is paid Answer: C

Maswali ya Marudio

Unajiuliza maswali ya zamani kuhusu mada hii yanaonekanaje? Hapa kuna idadi ya maswali kuhusu Insurance Contracts kutoka miaka iliyopita.

Swali 1 Ripoti

(a)(i) What is a proposal form?
(ii) List four general questions that are contained in a proposal form.

(b) List and explain three documents used in effecting insurance contracts. 
 

Maelezo ya Majibu

(a)(i) What a proposal form is

A proposal form is the printed document supplied by the insurer which the intending insured (the proposer) completes and signs to apply for insurance cover. It contains a set of questions through which the proposer supplies all the material facts about himself and the subject matter of the insurance. The information given forms the basis of the contract, enabling the insurer to assess the risk, decide whether to accept it and fix the appropriate premium.

(a)(ii) Four general questions contained in a proposal form

  1. The full name and address of the proposer.
  2. The age, sex and occupation of the proposer.
  3. A description of the subject matter to be insured and the sum to be insured (its value).
  4. Details of previous insurance and claims history, including whether any insurer has ever declined, cancelled or refused to renew a policy.

(Other acceptable general questions: the period of insurance required and a declaration that the answers are true.)

(b) Three documents used in effecting insurance contracts

  • Proposal form: As explained above, it is the document by which the proposer formally applies for cover and discloses the material facts on which the insurer bases its decision. It represents the offer stage of the contract.
  • Cover note: A temporary document issued by the insurer to confirm that cover is in force pending the preparation of the full policy. It gives the insured immediate protection and states the main terms, remaining valid for a short period (often 30 or 60 days) until the policy document is ready.
  • Insurance policy (policy document): The formal, legal contract between the insurer and the insured. It sets out in detail the names of the parties, the subject matter, the risks covered, the sum insured, the premium, the period of cover, the exclusions and the conditions. It is the conclusive evidence of the terms of the agreement.

(The certificate of insurance and the premium receipt are also acceptable documents.)