AIRMIC's new voluntary scheme to reduce the use of
Reservation of Rights will benefit all parties, but only if they
approach it in the intended spirit, say Jonathan Bruce and Andrew
Stevenson of Elborne Mitchell.
The Statement of Principles in relation to Reservation of
Rights, published this month by the Association of Insurance and
Risk Managers (AIRMIC), could be a shot in the arm for amicable
claims handling between insurers and insureds. As the Statement
recognizes, they are both "stakeholders" in the same
venture, and there should be a spirit of partnership rather than
one of hostility, at least until things have gone fundamentally
sour.
It is a common enough scenario: an insured notifies a sizeable
claim to its insurers. The insurer, spooked by the size of the
claim, sees a potential coverage issue and immediately issues a
Reservation of Rights (ROR) to try and protect its position.
Feeling cut adrift, the insured's relationship with its
insurers becomes
