보험계약상 최대선의의무와 고지의무 -최근 영국가계보험법 입법안을 중심으로-

Unlike most contracts, insurance contracts are said to be based on "utmost good faith" and one aspect of this is that the law imposes a duty on prospective policyholders to disclose all material facts. This was first laid down by Lord Mansfield C.J. in Carter v. Boehm, and his formulation of the disclosure duty is partially codified in the Marine Insurance Act 1906. This Marine Insurance Act 1906 requires a consumer to volunteer information to insurers. It is clearly important that insurers receive the information they need to assess risks because information from policyholders is often the basis of underwriting decisions on whether to accept risks at all, and if so, at what price and on what terms. However, it is now generally accepted that insurers should ask consumers for the information they want to know. Because the law needs to be updated to correspond to the realities of a mass consumer market, the 2009 [UK] Consumer Insurance (Disclosure and Representations) Bill was published by the English and Scottish Law Commissions in December 2009. This draft Bill replaces the duty to volunteer information with a duty on consumers to take reasonable care to answer the insurer's questions fully and accurately. And where a consumer makes a deliberate or reckless misrepresentation, the UK draft Bill permits the insurer to treat the contract as if it did not exist, and refuse all claims. But where the consumer answers questions carelessly, it provides the insurer with a proportionate remedy. The UK draft Bill would be a good model to us because the main problems are similar. Korean system on the duty of disclosure needs to be updated like the UK draft Bill.