A Study on Trends for Reforming the Rule of Insurable Interest in English Insurance Contract Law - Mainly on Indemnity Insurance -

영국 보험법 상 피보험이익에 관한 법원칙의 개혁동향 - 손해보험을 중심으로 -

For a contract of insurance to be valid, the insured needs to have an insurable interest. This means that someone taking out insurance must stand to gain a benefit from the preservation of the subject matter of the insurance or to suffer a disadvantage should it be lost. Although the principle is simple, the detail is difficult. English Law Commission proposed some changes to provide certainty on the rule of insurable interest in LCCP 201. This article is, therefore, designed to examine the proposals for reforming trends in English insurance contract law. The proposals on Law Commission in summarized as following. First, LC proposed to retain the requirement for insurable interest because it was thought to fulfil four useful functions. Secondly, LC proposes to repeal the Marine Insurance Act 1788 and the Marine Insurance (Gambling Policies) Act 1909 to confirm that the requirement of insurable interest applies to all forms of insurance. Thirdly, LC proposes to retain the provisions on insurable interest in the Marine Insurance Act 1906. Finally, LC proposes to define insurable interest and thinks that full definition of insurable interest should remain flexible.