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1 – 10 of 523This paper is contributed by RICS Insurance Services Ltd, the insurance brokers operating the official professional indemnity insurance scheme for the Royal Institution of…
Abstract
This paper is contributed by RICS Insurance Services Ltd, the insurance brokers operating the official professional indemnity insurance scheme for the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. The Chairman of the Company, representing the RICS on the board, is a Past‐President of the Institution. The company handles insurance only for chartered surveyors and firms in which at least one of the principals is a chartered surveyor. The company was invited to prepare this paper following the publication in autumn 1986 of ‘Caveat Surveyor’ (Surveyors Publications), a booklet in which the stories of a selection of claims under the RICS scheme are told and attention is drawn to lessons to be learned from them. It was reviewed in Structural Survey Volume 5 No. 4 (p. 306).
Immaculata Anthony Ekpo and Timothy Tunde Oladokun
Errors or negligence are inherent parts of professional services, thus necessitating the adoption of professional indemnity insurance (PII) as a risk management tool to protect…
Abstract
Purpose
Errors or negligence are inherent parts of professional services, thus necessitating the adoption of professional indemnity insurance (PII) as a risk management tool to protect professional interest. This paper sought to examine the adoption of PII among Estate Surveying and Valuation firms in Oyo State, Nigeria.
Design/methodology/approach
The quantitative research methodology was adopted, and primary data were collected via questionnaires distributed to 84 purposively selected Estate Surveyors and Valuers (ESVs) who are mostly principal partners or branch managers in the study area. Sixty-three questionnaires representing 75.0% were returned and found useable. Data collected were analysed with the aid of descriptive statistics of percentages and relative importance index (RII).
Findings
The study found that the influence of foreign investors as well as the requirements of PII by the professional body as a basis for annual license renewal were responsible for higher level of awareness among the practitioners. However, about average of the firms had adopted PII with few taking professional insurance policy of as low as ₦500,000 per annum. The study recommends that NIESV/ESVARBON should sensitize, monitor and enforce the adoption of PII by ESVs as a means to increase public confidence and credibility of valuers while rendering professional services to clients.
Research limitations/implications
The current study was limited in coverage to Ibadan thus necessitating a study with wider area of coverage of national status.
Practical implications
The study has major implications on real estate education and practice in Nigeria. There is an urgent need for the professional body to devise means of enforcing compliance with the adoption of PII so as to be able to get the confidence of their teeming clients for subsequent patronage.
Originality/value
The paper is one among the scanty studies that provides a useful guide to real estate practitioners in developing countries towards adopting PII to shield the company from unnecessary negative exposure and financial loss.
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Stephen C. Yam and Phoebe W. Yam
The Hong Kong Society of Accountants proposes to allowincorporating audit practices in Hong Kong. Finds that auditors areanxious about their increasing risk and the legal…
Abstract
The Hong Kong Society of Accountants proposes to allow incorporating audit practices in Hong Kong. Finds that auditors are anxious about their increasing risk and the legal liabilities of their work, believing that incorporation is the best method to protect their interests. Many auditors believe that the profession should place the public interests at the top but the interests of the profession should also be protected. Therefore incorporation of the audit practice is necessary in Hong Kong, but strict rules should be imposed to prevent abuse. In addition, finds that clients are not concerned about this issue. The bankers will give a lower value to the audited financial statements issued by incorporated audit firms. In implementation, the professional indemnity insurance and the minimal capital requirement will become the key concern of auditors to incorporate their audit firms.
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The Plaintiff, J. Rothschild Assurance plc, is a life assurance company. This case arose out of the review of pensions mis‐selling and the Plaintiff sought to be indemnified by…
Abstract
The Plaintiff, J. Rothschild Assurance plc, is a life assurance company. This case arose out of the review of pensions mis‐selling and the Plaintiff sought to be indemnified by its professional indemnity insurers for the losses it had or may yet incur as a result of having to compensate investors pursuant to the review of pensions mis‐selling. The first Defendant, Mr Collyear, is a representative Lloyd's Underwriter, as are some of the other Defendants (the remainder of the Defendants being insurance companies). All the Defendants had subscribed to three ‘claims made’ indemnity insurance policies which together extended cover of some £20m, covering the period 1st February, 1993 until 31st January, 1994 and were identical in all terms material to this action. Because the Plaintiff was seeking indemnity in respect of so many different individual cases of compensation Mr Justice Clarke had, at an earlier hearing on 10th February, 1998, ordered a maximum of ten sample claims to be tried and all other proceedings stayed. It subsequently transpired that both parties agreed that neither were in a position to have a full trial of the facts of these cases but they nonetheless proceeded to a hearing of these sample claims which were used here in this case as a vehicle to isolate, argue and resolve certain basic themes and issues which were common to the claims in the stayed proceedings.
Examines insurance issues which are likely to arise in the case of“sick buildings”, where many parties from building owner toemployer to tenant could be held accountable for the…
Abstract
Examines insurance issues which are likely to arise in the case of “sick buildings”, where many parties from building owner to employer to tenant could be held accountable for the problems of an equally wide range of sufferers. The regular classes of insurance include employee′s liability, public liability, professional indemnity, and latent and inherent defects, though it behoves insurance companies to make a firm commitment to addressing the problems of pollution and contamination.
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Discusses the features which distinguish the market for residential property from the markets for other assets. Proposes that financial institutions should offer house‐buyers…
Abstract
Discusses the features which distinguish the market for residential property from the markets for other assets. Proposes that financial institutions should offer house‐buyers indemnity policies which pay out an amount related to any fall in the level of a general index of house prices, on the sale of the house at a loss at any time during the mortgage term. To facilitate hedging the risk of a portfolio of such policies (and therefore, the pricing of the policies), a market in “perpetual futures” on indices of housing assets is proposed. Discusses possible users of these contracts and outlines further research.
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Professional consultants are liable for damage resulting from negligent advice, design or acts. This research examines the perspectives of professionals involved in advice on the…
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Professional consultants are liable for damage resulting from negligent advice, design or acts. This research examines the perspectives of professionals involved in advice on the built heritage. It examines the risks for consultants as perceived by conservation advisory bodies, insurers, legal consultants and conservation consultants. The paper explores the risks assumed in conservation of the built heritage and control measures generally adopted. Results indicate two types of consultancy advice that incur different risk levels. Conservation consultancy can be separated by the knowledge and experience of the consultant(s) involved, either conservation awareness or general property and construction awareness only. The former can be further subdivided by the particular nature of their advice: advice relating to survey and valuation, and advice relating to repair and refurbishment. Consultants perceive clients to be divided into two categories: informed and uninformed. A typology of clients and professional consultants is presented, which indicates broad risk categories.
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Examines the respective concepts of collateral warranties andlatent defects insurance, and the strengths and weaknesses of eacharrangement. Discusses the objective or protecting…
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Examines the respective concepts of collateral warranties and latent defects insurance, and the strengths and weaknesses of each arrangement. Discusses the objective or protecting owner and occupier, the collateral warranty matrix, building‐specific advantages of LDI, and recent events in the LDI market. Concludes that the inherent uncertainties in collateral warranties are likely to result in increased appreciation and demand for latent defects insurance.
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Clause 19 [Insurance] provides the requirements for insurance of the Works, Goods, liability for breach of professional duty, injuries to persons (including employees) and damage…
Abstract
Clause 19 [Insurance] provides the requirements for insurance of the Works, Goods, liability for breach of professional duty, injuries to persons (including employees) and damage to property, as well as insurance required by Laws etc. Drafting a cohesive insurance strategy providing adequate cover for all relevant risks is a job for insurance specialists. If not drawn up by specialists, relevant risks might not be adequately covered or the global cost of providing insurance might increase (e.g. because some risks are insured by the Employer as well as the Contractor). Drawing up an insurance strategy may provide the best cover at the lowest cost but only if the work is done by suitably quali?ed specialists.
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Considers the effects of latent building defects and thecontractual rights that exist when a defect is found, depending on theage of the building. Examines the various insurance…
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Considers the effects of latent building defects and the contractual rights that exist when a defect is found, depending on the age of the building. Examines the various insurance options available – commercial property insurance, public liability insurance, and legal liability policies – as well as the latest developments in latent defect insurance and how this can be arranged. Concludes that building defects will continue to arise and that already available latent defects insurance may become a legislated necessity.
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