Summary |
This volume examines the nature, content, and interpretation of property-liability insurance contracts. It includes a detailed analysis of the types of information typically found in insurance contracts, as well as external factors that must be considered when insurance contracts are analyzed and applied. The first chapter sets the stage by describing the nature of insurance contracts as legal documents and introducing some fundamental principles of insurance. Chapter 2 describes the structure of insurance policies and describes an organized approach for reading these documents. The next chapter explains the important role of the common insurance policy provisions, found in most insurance policies that are so commonplace that they often are overlooked.
For coverage to apply to any given party, that party must not only have an insurable interest in the loss but also be a party insured under an applicable contract of insurance, points explored in Chapter 4. Chapter 5 makes it clear that the loss must involve an insured event and analyzes the elements that comprise an insured event. When an insured event involves loss to an insured party with an insurable interest, the amount of recovery under an insurance contract may be established by considering policy limits and loss valuation provisions (Chapter 6); coinsurance, deductibles, and other loss-sharing provisions (Chapter 7); and multiple sources of recovery, including but not limited to other insurance (Chapter 8). Finally, insurance policy analysis is not limited to the clear language of written provisions printed within the policy. Chapter 9 examines a number of external factors that are also taken into account.
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