Coal Search Report Insurance Policy

Schedule

This policy and schedule shall be read together and any word or expression to which a specific meaning has been attached in either shall bear such meaning wherever it may appear.

Where a Coal Search Report has been obtained in connection with a sale of the property, cover is provided for the benefit of a purchaser and their lender; in the case of a re-mortgage or where the existing owner chooses to obtain a Coal Search Report, cover is provided for the benefit of the owner and their lender.

The policy offers protection against loss sustained by the owner of the property if any new problems or adverse entries are revealed in a subsequent Coal Search Report which were not revealed by the original report to which the policy was attached.
The insured shall at all times comply with the requirements of the Conditions of this Policy.

Definitions

In this policy unless the context requires otherwise the following words or expressions shall have the following meanings

Date of the report means the date of the Coal Search Report attached to this policy.

Coal Search Report means the attached Coal Search Report that the Coal Authority has prepared for the property following a Coal Search Report providing information compiled from the Coal Authority’s records in relation to past, present and future underground and opencast coal-mining activity, shafts and adits (vertical and horizontal entries to mines) coal-mining geology, coal-mining related hazards, coal-mining subsidence and mine gas.

The Coal Authority is a NDPB (non-departmental public body) sponsored by BEIS (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy) 200 Lichfield Lane, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, NG18 4RG. The Coal Authority is responsible for producing the Coal Search Report, issuing this policy, collecting the premium and declaring the existence of this policy to the insurer.

Insurer means Liberty Legal Indemnities – part of Liberty Mutual Insurance Europe Limited.

Insured means the person insured by this policy. This may be:

the person who asked for the Coal Search Report in connection with your purchase of the property (and your mortgagee)
the person who purchased the property (and your mortgagee) if the person selling the property has asked for a Coal Search Report for the benefit of the purchaser as part of a seller’s pack or if the property has been purchased by way of auction
the owner of the property (and your mortgagee) if you are re-mortgaging the property or the owner of the property who has chosen to obtain a Coal Search Report

Knowledge means actual knowledge or notice but not knowledge or notice which may be imputed to the insured by reason of the public records as defined in this policy or any other records which impute notice of matters affecting the property.

Market value means the average of the estimates given by 2 independent valuers (one to be appointed by and paid for by the insurer and the other by the insured) as to the price which could have been obtained for the property on the open market at the date on which the insured first becomes aware of the existence of the defect and under normal sale conditions at the time.

Property means the residential property at each address shown in the Schedule to this Policy and in respect of which the Coal Authority has provided the attached Coal Search Report.

Public records means records established by the Crown or any local or statutory authority at the date of the mortgage pursuant to the Land Registration Acts 1925 and 2002 the Land Charges Act 1972 and the Local Land Charges Act 1975 including any replacement or amending legislation.

Period of insurance means the period from the date of the report until:

the property is sold
the debt secured by the mortgage is repaid if the insured is a mortgagee

Premium means the total amount paid in consideration of the cover provided by this policy which includes Insurance Premium Tax at the appropriate rate.

Cover

Subject to the terms and conditions of this policy and provided the Coal Authority has collected the premium cover will be provided up to the limit of cover for all claims made during the period of insurance in respect of:

the loss in market value of the property directly attributable to any changes in the information revealed in a subsequent Coal Search Report which was not revealed in the Coal Search Report attached to this policy which was carried out on the date of the report, such loss in market value to be calculated at the date of the subsequent Coal Search Report, and
any costs and expenses incurred with the consent of the insurer

Exclusions

This policy does not cover any loss:

if at the date of the claim you are not the legal or beneficial owner of the property
if the property is not a single private home in the United Kingdom which is used only for residential purposes
in relation to loss of a transaction for the sale or for the purchase of the property nor for any costs incurred by you in relation to the loss of such transaction
in respect of structural or other physical damage caused to the property by subsidence, flooding or otherwise
as a result of any change in information in response to questions 3(a), 3(b), 8(a) or 8(b) of a Coal Search Report (form CON29M (2018))
for any entry on any subsequent Coal Search Report after the date of the report if this entry also appears on the attached Coal Search Report
for any problem revealed by the first Coal Search Report after the date of the report if the insured or their legal representative knew about the problem on or before the date of the report
for any change in the interpretation of data upon which the Coal Search Report was produced provided such data remains unchanged

The insurer will not be responsible for any loss for which the Coal Authority may be required to pay by law.

Conditions

On becoming aware of any potential or actual claim against this policy the insured must:
1. provide written notice and details to the insurer without unnecessary delay
2. provide all information and assistance that the insurer (and/or their agents solicitors or surveyors) require at the insured’s own expense
Any act or omission by the insured or anyone acting on the insured’s behalf which in whole or in part induces a claim under this policy (save as may already have occurred and be recorded in this policy or schedule and save in relation to carrying out the insured use) shall void this policy.
If at the time of a claim under this policy there is other insurance (whether incepted by the insured or any other party) under which the insured may be entitled to make a claim either wholly or partly in respect of the same interest or risk covered by this policy the insurer will not be liable to pay or contribute more than their rateable proportion of the claim.
The law of England and Wales will apply to this contract unless at the date of the report you area resident of Scotland or Northern Ireland in which case the law of that country will apply.

Cancellation rights

You can cancel a policy by contacting us within 14 days of the policy commencement date provided all parties that have an interest in the policy (for example mortgage lender) also consent to the cancellation. Please telephone or email us in the first instance on 01892 863863 or at enquiries@goodtitle.co.uk referencing the policy number.

Non-invalidation clause

The interest of any insured under this policy will not be invalidated or affected by any other party breaching the policy terms and conditions, or providing false or misleading information to the insurer, unless:

such party acted on the insured’s behalf or with the insured’s knowledge and consent
where the insured is a successor in title or mortgagee, chargee or lessee, they had knowledge of a breach of the policy terms or conditions, or that false or misleading information has been provided to the insurer prior to the date of commencement

General

Unless otherwise indicated, no term of this insurance contract is intended to limit or affect the statutory rights or obligations of any of the parties to this contract under, and/or the effect of, parts 2, 3, 4 or 5 of the Insurance Act 2015 (the “2015 Act”).
Any term of this insurance contract which would, but for this clause, put the insured in a worse position as respects any of the matters provided for in parts 2, 3, 4 or 5 of the 2015 Act than it would be by virtue of the provisions of those parts is, to that extent, of no effect, unless the insurer has complied with the transparency requirements in section 17 of the 2015 Act.
The insured should ask the insurer or its broker or solicitor for clarification of any matters which are not clear to it regarding the scope of disclosure required or the provisions of this insurance contract.

The duty of fair presentation

Before this insurance contract is entered into, the insured (including anyone acting on behalf of the insured in arranging this insurance contract) must make a fair presentation of the risk to the insurer, in accordance with section 3 of the 2015 Act. In summary, they must:
1. disclose to the insurer every material circumstance which the insured knows or ought to know. Failing that, they must give the insurer sufficient information to put a prudent insurer on notice that it needs to make further enquiries in order to reveal material circumstances. A matter is material if it would influence the judgement of a prudent insurer as to whether to accept the risk, or the terms of the insurance (including premium)
2. make the disclosure in clause 1 a) above in a reasonably clear and accessible way
3. ensure that every material representation of fact is substantially correct, and that every material representation of expectation or belief is made in good faith
For the purposes of clause 1 a) above, the insured is expected to know the following:
1. if the insured is an individual, what is known to the individual and anybody who is responsible for arranging his or her insurance
2. if the insured is not an individual, what is known to anybody who is part of the insured’s management; or anybody who is responsible for arranging the insured’s insurance
3. whether the insured is an individual or not, what should have reasonably been revealed by a reasonable search of information available to the insured. The information may be held within the insured’s organisation, or by any third party (including but not limited to the broker, solicitor, subsidiaries, affiliates or any other person who will be covered under the insurance). If the insured is insuring subsidiaries, affiliates or other parties, the insurer expects that the insured will have included them in its enquiries, and that the insured will inform the insurer if it has not done so. The reasonable search may be conducted by making enquiries or by any other means

Breach of warranty: suspensory

If the insured breaches a warranty in this insurance contract, the insurer’s liability under the contract shall be suspended from the time of the breach until the time when the breach is remedied (if it is capable of being remedied). The insurer will have no liability to the insured for any loss which occurs, or which is attributable to something happening, during the period when the insurer’s liability is suspended.

Terms not relevant to the actual loss

Where: (i) there has been a failure to comply with a term (express or implied) of this insurance contract, other than a term that defines the risk as a whole; and (ii) compliance with such term would tend to reduce the risk of loss of a particular kind and/or loss at a particular location and/or loss at a particular time, the insurer cannot rely on the breach of such term to exclude, limit or discharge its liability if the insured shows that the failure to comply with such term could not have increased the risk of the loss which actually occurred in the circumstances in which it occurred.

Fraudulent claims clause

If the insured makes a fraudulent claim under this insurance contract, the insurer:
1. is not liable to pay the claim
2. may recover from the insured any sums paid by the insurer to the insured or to any third party in respect of the claim
3. may by notice to the insured treat the contract as having been terminated with effect from the time of the fraudulent act
If the insurer exercises its right under Clause 1 c) above:
1. the insurer shall not be liable to the insured in respect of a relevant event occurring after the time of the fraudulent act. A relevant event is whatever gives rise to the insurer’s liability under the insurance contract (such as the occurrence of a loss, the making of a claim, or the notification of a potential claim)
2. the insurer need not return any of the premiums paid

Fraudulent claims – group insurance

If this insurance contract provides cover for any person or entity who is not a party to the contract (a covered person), and a fraudulent claim is made under the contract by or on behalf of a covered person, the insurer may exercise the rights set out in the preceding clause above as if there were an individual insurance contract between the insurer and the covered person. However the exercise of any of those rights shall not affect the cover provided under the contract for any other person or entity.

Remedies for breach of the duty of fair presentation

If, prior to entering into this insurance contract, the duty of fair presentation shall have been breached, the remedies available to the insurer are set out below:
1. if the breach of the duty of fair presentation is deliberate or reckless:
  1. the insurer may avoid the contract, and refuse to pay all claims
  2. the insurer need not return any of the premiums paid
2. if the breach of the duty of fair presentation is not deliberate or reckless, the insurer’s remedy shall depend upon what the insurer would have done if the duty of fair presentation had been complied with:
  1. if the insurer would not have entered into the contract at all, the insurer may avoid the contract and refuse all claims, but must return the premiums paid
  2. if the insurer would have entered into the contract, but on different terms (other than terms relating to the premium), the contract is to be treated as if it had been entered into on those different terms from the outset, if the insurer so requires
  3. in addition, if the insurer would have entered into the contract, but would have charged a higher premium, the insurer may reduce proportionately the amount to be paid on a claim (and, if applicable, the amount already paid on prior claims). In those circumstances, the insurer shall pay only X% of what it would otherwise have been required to pay, where X = (premium actually charged/higher premium) X 100
If, prior to entering into a variation to this insurance contract, the duty of fair presentation shall have been breached, the remedies available to the insurer are set out below:
1. if the breach of the duty of fair presentation is deliberate or reckless:
  1. the insurer may by notice to the insured treat the contract as having been terminated from the time when the variation was concluded
  2. the insurer need not return any of the premiums paid
2. if the breach of the duty of fair presentation is not deliberate or reckless, the insurer’s remedy shall depend upon what the insurer would have done if the duty of fair presentation had been complied with:
  1. if the insurer would not have agreed to the variation at all, the insurer may treat the contract as if the variation was never made, but must in that event return any extra premium paid
  2. if the insurer would have agreed to the variation of the contract, but on different terms (other than terms relating to the premium), the variation is to be treated as if it had been entered into on those different terms, if the insurer so requires
  3. if the insurer would have increased the premium by more than it did or at all, then the insurer may reduce proportionately the amount to be paid on a claim arising out of events after the variation. In those circumstances, the insurer shall pay only X% of what it would otherwise have been required to pay, where X = (premium actually charged/higher premium) X 100
  4. if the insurer would not have reduced the premium by more than it did or at all, then the insurer may reduce proportionately the amount to be paid on a claim arising out of events after the variation. In those circumstances, the insurer shall pay only X% of what it would otherwise have been required to pay, where X = (premium actually charged/reduced total premium) X 100

Notice to the insured

Any enquiry or complaint should be addressed in the first instance to:

Legal and Insurance Services Limited
PO Box 234
Tunbridge Wells
Kent
TN3 0LX
Tel: 01892 863863
Fax: 01892 861025
Email: enquiries@goodtitle.co.uk

If you are unable to resolve your enquiry or complaint with the above please contact:
Liberty Specialty Markets
20 Fenchurch Street
London
EC3M 3AW
Tel: 020 3758 0000

Complaints that cannot be resolved may be referred to the Financial Ombudsman Service (www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk). Further details will be provided at the appropriate stage of the complaints process.

Notifying a claim

If anything should happen which might give rise to a claim under the policy please forward full details to Legal and Insurance Services Limited at the above address. Please include mention of the Policy Number shown at the top of the Schedule to the policy.

If you do not receive a reply or acknowledgement within 10 working days please forward the details to Liberty Specialty Markets at the above address.