Insurance Tips
Back to Tips Index | Good Intentions #2
Mrs. F. took out a life insurance policy in 1995 Three years later, Mrs. F. underwent a mammography. On the day of the test, her husband contacted their insurance agent and requested he add on cover for "serious diseases" including cover for cancer. On the application form, the husband wrote that there had been no change with his wife’s medical condition. The endorsement was added onto the policy.
Eight months passed – Mrs. F. underwent a further test and was
diagnosed definitely with breast cancer.
The insurance company refused the claim and the case went to court.
The judge ruled that a policy that had been issued on the basis of
false information was in fact no policy. The relevant questions on
the application form were: "Do you have any malignant growths?" The
husband answered in the negative. The second question was whether or
not any tests had been recently undertaken and this answer was left
blank.
Despite the fact that at the time of filling out the endorsement application, there was not yet proof of cancer, the fact that Mrs. F. had gone in for testing was vital information which was withheld from the insurance company. Would they have known this, they would not have issued the endorsement.
Moral: Good intentions do not override the truth!