英国保险法改革历程检视与立法启示

The History of British Insurance Law Reform and the Enlightenment of Legislation

经过百余年的岁月变迁,合同当事人的信息获知手段与社会意识均发生较大的转变,原先海上保险的规定在适用于人身保险合同时,对投保人(被保险人)会造成诸多不公平的严重后果,成为诉讼频发的根源。在一定程度上这已经衍变为制约保险业务发展的羁绊,为此,各方坚决要求对英国保险法进行改革。相较于《1906年海上保险法》,2015年英国《保险法》变动最大的部分是告知义务制度。本文从1957年英国司法改革委员会审视保险单上有关告知义务与担保事项的规定开始,对长达60年的改革历程进行追踪研究,解析每一阶段修法争论焦点,特别是对告知义务制度设计与保险单担保事项着力进行分析,深悟并挖掘其中立法的精神,以期对我国保险法进一步修正和完善有所借鉴。

Over years of development,the social consciousness and the means of information acquired by the parties to the contract has changed greatly.Compared to theMarine Insurance Act 1906,the largest change in the Insurance Act 2015 of Britain was the duty of pre-contractual disclosure system.When appliedto the life insurance contract,provisions of the marine insurance to the consumer caused harsh consequences as unfairness to the policyholder（or the insured）.Thisled to a series of litigation,and to a certain extent,evolved into restrictions to the development of insurance business.Therefore,all parties strongly requested a reform of the insurance act to make sure that the law balances the interests of bothinsured and insurer.Since 1957,the authorshave tracked the processof Law Reform Commission dedicating to the duty of disclosure and warranty clauses.We have analyzed the focus of the debate in each stage,especially onthe warranty and the design of the duty of disclosure which remains the core of Insurance Act 2015.A deeper understanding and the reference to the spirit of new legislation may help the optimization and the amendment of Chinese Insurance Law.