21 Sep Insurable Interests
I have been following the case of Nomia Ndlovu with interest because of the ramifications on insurance law.
She is the fomer police woman accused of murdering her relatives and lover, in return claiming insurance as a result of their deaths.
The issue here is the term “insurable interest”- i.e. to take out insurance for anyone or anything in which that person has an interest and would be negatively affected should anything happen to that particular person or item. We insure things that we deem valuable, for example a car, a house or jewelry.
With regards to life policies this would involve someone whom you are either in a relationship with, a relation or someone whom you are depending on and their death would leave you at a disadvantage or loss (not a closed definition).
It is interesting to note the varied nature of the relationship with the deceased in this case.
It is further interesting to note how the insurance laws could have been manipulated to serve a particular end and whether the checks and balances of the affected insurance company/ies will be under scrutiny by the financial services watchdogs.
This being a highly regulated industry, I can only imagine the ramifications of this case on this particular industry.
Will the definition of insurable interest be amended? It remains to be seen.
#financialservices #insurance #law
No Comments