Insurance Act, 1936

Prohibition of issue of illegal policies.

53.—(1) Every industrial assurance company which issues a policy of industrial assurance which is illegal or is ultra vires such company shall be deemed to have made default in complying with the provisions of this Act.

(2) Where an industrial assurance company issues or has issued a policy of industrial assurance which is illegal or is ultra vires such company, such company shall, without prejudice to any other penalty or liability thereby incurred, be liable, if such policy was effected before the commencement of this Part of this Act, to pay to the person entitled thereto a sum equal to the cash surrender value (to be ascertained in accordance with the provisions of this Part of this Act applicable thereto) of such policy, and, if such policy was effected after the commencement of this Part of this Act, to pay to the person entitled thereto a sum equal to the amount of the premiums paid on foot of such policy, unless, in either case, such company proves that owing to a false representation on the part of the person who effected or the person who made the proposal for such policy, such company did not know that such policy was illegal or ultra vires such company.

(3) Every collector of, and every person employed by, an industrial assurance company who assists in effecting a policy of industrial assurance which is illegal or ultra vires such company shall, unless he proves that he did not know and could not reasonably have known that such policy was illegal or ultra vires such company, be guilty of an offence under this sub-section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding five pounds.