AN IMPORTANT UPDATE FROM FARR
Material Facts Awareness
and the recent Environcom Case
Background
Environcom, one of the UK's leading Waste Recycling companies for Electrical goods has lost a reported £6million claim against Miles Smith Insurance Brokers, this was following a fire at its recycling site in Grantham.
Environcom brought a litigation claim against the brokers following insurance provider Woodbrook rejecting their fire damage claim on non disclosure grounds.
Why are you receiving this notice?
As ever, FARR are here to assist you and ensure that you are fully covered at all times.
As a gentle reminder, we would advise that we must be notified of all Material Facts.
What is a Material Fact?
We would consider a Material Fact to be anything that an insurer would deem to have a bearing on the risk being presented and which therefore could influence either:
i) The level of premium imposed
ii) The terms and conditions of the insurance offered
iii) Whether the insurer is prepared to accept you as a client
Some material facts examples could include (but are not limited to):
- Failure to advise property re-build costs in excess of £1,000,000
(or £50,000 if unoccupied)
- Type of Properties outside the usual realm of Social Housing
(eg Commercial premises being run as Nightclubs etc)
- Timber framed properties under construction
It is therefore your responsibility to provide complete and accurate information to insurers when taking out your policy, throughout the life of your policy and also when you renew your insurance.
It is also important that all statements you make on any proposal forms or statement facts are accurate and that all material facts are disclosed. Failure to do so could invalidate your insurance cover and mean that all or parts of a claim may not be paid. If you have any doubt as to whether a fact is material, then you should disclose them anyway.
Thanks for your time and please feel free to contact us if you require any assistance with your policy.
Joe Murphy,
Head of Business
FARR Insurance