Critically analyse the courts' approach to the interpretation of the Essay

Critically analyse the courts' approach to the interpretation of the duty of disclosure contained in s.18 of the Marine Insurance Act 1906 - Essay Example One of the notable ways in which marine insurance differs from other kinds of contracts is in the difference between the way conditions and warranties are treated. While under contract law, the breaching of a contractual condition can lead to a repudiation of contract but a breach of warranty does not allow such repudiation because a warranty is not fundamental to a contract. With a marine insurance contract however, the conditions are reversed and certain implied warranties, such as ensuring that the ship being insured is sea worthy2, will become as capable of enforcement as a contractual condition, with the provision for voiding of the contract in the event of a breach. Where marine insurance is concerned, the contractual principle underlying such contracts is not that of Caveat Emptor (Buyer Beware) as in the usual contracts, rather these contracts are based upon the uberrimae fides which is the requirement of good faith from both sides, as a result of which all information pertaining to potential risks must be disclosed fully and a failure to do so would be construed as concealment of relevant information, which is a valid ground for an insurer to void an insurance contract. The duties of disclosure are embodied in sections 18 and 19 of the Marine Insurance Act of 1906. Section 18 is primarily concerned with the duty of disclosure that is due from the insured while section 19 concerns the duty of disclosure that fall upon an agent who in involved in the process of getting a party insured. Section 20 underlies the â€Å"expectation or belief† of honesty that is implicit in the duty of disclosure placed upon an insured, so that representations are to be made in good faith.3 Since the question of marine insurance generally arises among parties that are in the shipping business, there is an underlying assumption behind the duty of disclosure wherein the