Changes will apply to any new policies from Ageas Commercial policies started or renewed after 1 October 2015

Contract signing paperwork

Ageas has become one of the UK’s first insurers to adopt the principles of the Insurance Act 2015 which comes into force on 12 August 2016.

The insurer has also told brokers that there will be no change to its terms of business arrangements (TOBAs) as a consequence of the Insurance Act 2015.

Any new claims from Ageas Commercial policies starting or renewed after 1 October 2015 will be handled as if they had been written under the Act.

In practice, this will mean that claims will be dealt with as follows:

Non deliberate or non-reckless non-disclosure/misrepresentation

  • Where Ageas would have charged a higher premium, the amount of the claim settlement will be reduced in proportion to the premium the insurer would have actually charged had the circumstances been disclosed.
  • If different terms or conditions would have been imposed, Ageas will treat the insurance contract as if those terms had applied from the date of the breach.
  • In circumstances where Ageas would not have written the policy, the insurance will be treated as void and the premium returned.

Deliberate or reckless non-disclosure/misrepresentation

  • If Ageas considers the non-disclosure or misrepresentation to be deliberate or reckless, the insurance will be treated as void and the premium retained.

Warranties

  • Warranties or conditions precedent will only be invoked if a breach has contributed to the loss that occurred.

Fraudulent claims

  • Ageas will not look to avoid a policy as the result of a fraudulent claim, so will pay any legitimate claims made before the fraudulent act occurred. Ageas will, however, not pay any fraudulent claims and will cancel the policy with effect from the fraudulent act.

In addition, due to the mixed nature of commercial vehicle policies, and the wider protection offered by the Consumer Insurance Act 2012, all policies will be handled by the Ageas personal lines team under the auspices of the 2012 Act.

Broker distribution director Chris Dobson said: “The Insurance Act 2015 brings commercial insurance law into the 21st Century.

“As an insurer focused on the needs of the SME market and the brokers serving this growing and vibrant sector we wanted our customers to take advantage of the new law as soon as possible.

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