HUA TYAN DEVELOPMENT LTD v ZURICH INSURANCE CO LTD AND ANOTHER (THE 'HO FENG 7')

摘要

Insurance (marine)-Warranty as to deadweight tonnage of vessel - Vessel not fulfilling terms of warranty-Whether insurer entitled to rely upon warranty - Duty of utmost good faith -Liability of insurance broker - Marine Insurance Ordinance, sections 18 and 33. This was a claim by the claimant insured against the first defendant insurer and, in the alternative, the second defendant broker, for the sum of US$1.5 million being the value of the cargo covered by an insurance policy dated 11 January 2008. The plaintiff insured was a trader in timber, shipping round logs from south-east Asia to China. Since late 2004 cargo insurance was taken out by the insured through the broker, the second defendant. The typical process through which the insured obtained insurance coverage was that the insured would call the broker and the broker would provide an application form to be completed. The form would then be returned to the broker, who would then transmit it to the first defendant, the insurer.