Research On Open Cover In Marine Insurance

Open Cover originated from the float insurance in British marine insurance market,which enables the policyholder to make quick and convenient insurance for frequently long-term cargo,as well as providing long-term and stable premium income.As the outstanding advantages of Open Cover,the application of such kind of insurance is rapidly growing.From article 231 to 233,it clearly sets out specific rules for Open Cover in Chinese maritime code;however,people always are confused by the nature of Open Cover and the way it carried out,which led to a number of disputes.So here the author will start from the provisions in maritime code,according to international common practice and relative measures adopted by developed countries,to give a deep interpretation of Chinese Open Cover policy.This article consists of four parts,while giving a comprehensive analysis on Open Cover policy.The first part discusses the basic theory of Open Cover,including its concepts,a comparison with relative concepts and its internal relationship between rights and obligations.At the aspect of definition,this paragraph main combines scholars’ opinion from common law countries with our country’s existing rules on definition of Open Cover to try to make an accurate definition on that issue.At the same time the author compares the difference between Open Cover and similar concepts,as well as the external form of Open Cover,by which trying to draw a framework of Open Cover policy.The second part sets out from the internal characteristics of Open Cover policy,analyzing the relationship between Open Cover and Voyage Number Policy.This is very important for parties to clarify its own contractual rights and obligations,and This also lay the foundation for a better performance of the contract.The third part mainly analyzes retrospective effect of voyage policy in Open Cover.Since the specificity of the term of Open Cover,it can protect the parities ’interests in a better way if people can have a well understanding of the theoretical and practical basic of Open Cover’s retrospective effect,as well as the limited scope of application.The fourth part is around the topic: the insured’s duty of declaration,which including its characteristics and nature,as well as the legal consequence of infringement,clarifying the boundaries of performance.Through the analysis above,the author here intends to provide some fundamental suggestions for better application of Open Cover policy,while trying to provide some legal basis for the disputes on such issues.