INSURANCE

Southland Times, Issue 20494, 24 May 1928, Page 7

INSURANCE

“PROBATE” POLICY CLAIM FOR RETURN OF PREMIUM MISREPRESENTATION ALLEGED (Per United Press Association.) New Plymouth, May 23. Insurance agents from rival companies, some of them taking notes, were present in numbers in the Supreme Court to-day, when Agnes O. B. Hicks, wife of Robert Hicks, of Hawera, succeeded in a claim against the Colonial Mutual Life Assurance Company for the return of a premium of £ll3 16/8 paid for a “probate” policy on her life. The agents for the society, Messrs F. E. Dejough and H. J. Harnish, were submitted to a searching cross-examination both by counsel and his Honour. The case for plaintiff was heard last week, and on the suggestion of Mr Justice Reed that Hicks had misunderstood the position, counsel was granted an adjournment to ascertain whether the company would agree to cancel the proposal. No rotation on this basis was reached, however, and the hearing of the defence was proceeded with to-day. It had been suggested by Mrs Hicks that the agents had wrongly told her that the amount payable on the policy would cover death and succession duties on the estate of her husband, who was 72 years of age, thus protecting her children’s interest. When the document arrived it contained no clauses to this effect. The defence was a complete denial of the allegation. After evidence for the defence had been heard, Mr Justice Reed expressed the opin* ion that lhe parties could not be said to be bound by the policy until they had seen and agreed to the conditions on the policy There was no contract till plaintiff had seen the policy, read it and decided that she would accept the conditions. He suggested that the proposal and policy might be construed as an offer and acceptance rerpectively. The terms were not known to the person concerned until the policy was actually delivered.