Brokers - Disclosure: duty to complete the proposal

(Kapur v J W Francis & Co, forthcoming [2000] Lloyd’s Rep IR)

There are numerous cases which are concerned with the role of an insurance broker in assisting the assured to complete the proposal form. The legal principles involved are, up to a point, straightforward. The broker is required to inform the assured of the duty to disclose material facts in respect of which there are no express questions, and the broker is also under a duty to ensure that any information given to him by the assured is communicated to the insurers. However, where material facts are not disclosed to the insurers, or false statements appear on the form, there may be a complex factual dispute as to how the error occurred and whether the fault is that of the assured or the broker. A case of this type is Kapur v J W Francis & Co, forthcoming [2000] Lloyd’s Rep IR.