The Laws of the Common Carrying Trade; Also of Marine, Fire and Life Insurance. Rendered Plain and Familiar, for Popular Use

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1849. Excerpt: ... The Laws of Insurance.--The Nature and Character of Insurance Contracts.--Illegal Insurance.--Fire Insurance.--Marine Insurance.--Form of the Contract.--Endorsements and Conditions of the Policy.--Preliminary Proofs in case of Loss, and herein of conditions and acts to be performed by the assured party.--Warranty and Representations.--What Property a party may Insure in his own name.--The Nature and Extent of Different Risks.--How Determined.--General Legal Rules of Construing the Policy.--What Losses deemed within the Policy.--Open and Valued Policies Defined.--Of Double and Re-Insurance.--Assignments of Policies of Insurance.--Agents of Insurance Companies.--When a person undertakes to obtain Insurance for another.--General Average and Contribution.--Particular Average, and Partial and Total Loss, &c, &c. THE LAWS OF INSURANCE. CHAPTER I. THE NATURE OF THE CONTRACT. Insurance is a contract for indemnity, entered into by parties to guard against such contingent losses as may or may not happen to the assured. The contract is based on the contingent liability of loss or risk. This may be remote, barely possible; or it may be proximate, morally certain. A policy (the instrument issued or made out to the insured party) may be against all risks; and in such case it will be construed by the courts to cover all losses, except those which arise from the fraud of the assured. Any Insurance, however, in contravention of the obvious policy of law, is void. Neither can a person be insured against a loss which he may incur by violating the law. It is an illegal insurance, to indemnify against the consequences of the wrongful acts of the party insured. There must also he an insurable interest. The party to be insured must have a property or interest in some shape t...