§ 27-14-6 — Application for Policy - Requirement; Reliance by Insurer; Admissibility into Evidence; Alterations

Alabama § 27-14-6

• Jurisdiction: Alabama
• Title 27: Insurance
• Ch. 14: The Insurance Contract

Text

(a) No life or disability insurance contract upon an individual, except a contract of group life insurance or of group or blanket disability insurance, shall be made or effectuated unless at the time of the making of the contract the individual insured, being of competent legal capacity to contract, applies therefor or has consented thereto, except in the following cases:
(1) A spouse may effectuate such insurance upon the other spouse;
(2) Any person having an insurable interest in the life of a minor or any person upon whom a minor is dependent for support and maintenance may effectuate insurance upon the life of, or pertaining to, such minor; and
(3) Family policies may be issued insuring any two or more members of a family on an application signed by either parent, a stepparent or by a husband or wife;
(b) An insurer shall be entitled to rely upon all statements, declarations, and representations made by an applicant for insurance relative to the insurable interest which such applicant has in the insured, and no insurer shall incur any legal liability except as set forth in the policy by virtue of any untrue statements, declarations, or representations so relied upon in good faith by the insurer.
(c) As to kinds of insurance other than life or disability insurance, no application for insurance signed by, or on behalf of, the insured shall be admissible in evidence in any action between the insured and the insurer arising out of the policy so applied for if the insurer has failed, at expiration of 30 days after receipt by the insurer of written demand therefor by, or on behalf of, the insured, to furnish to the insured a copy of such application reproduced by any legible means.
(d) No alteration of any written application for any life or disability insurance policy shall be made by any person other than the applicant without his written consent, except that insertions may be made by the insurer, for administrative purposes only, in such manner as to indicate clearly that such insertions are not to be ascribed to the applicant; provided, however, an insurer may prepare and attach to a contract of life or disability insurance a summary of the contents of the application therefor.

Legislative History

(Acts 1971, No. 407, p. 707, §319; Acts 1988, No. 88-545, p. 844, §1.)