Insurance Contracts CP - Law Reform Commission

(k) possible additional taxes and costs;
(l) limitations on the accuracy of information provided;
(m) arrangements for payment and performance;
(n) additional charges for use of a means of distance communication;
(o) availability of cancellation rights and details relating thereto;
(p) minimum length of the service where it is of a recurring nature;
(q) early or unilateral termination details and charges;
(r) instructions on exercise of the right to cancel the contract;
(s) details of the applicable law selected by the supplier on the issue of establishing
relations with the consumer;
(t) any term in the contract on applicable law/jurisdiction;
(u) language(s) in which contract details will be given;
(v) language(s) in which supplier will communicate with the consumer during currency of
the contract;
(w) availability of access to out of court redress mechanisms for the consumer;
(x) details on guarantee funds or other compensation agreements.
7.16 In addition, Schedule 2 to the 2004 Regulations sets out a number of information requirements
to be met before entering into a distance marketing contract by telephone. There are five categories of
information relating to the identity of the supplier or any intermediary in contact with the customer, a
description of the main characteristics of the service, total price and taxes, or a means of calculating
price, details of taxes or charges, and details of any available cancellation right.
7.17 Apart from these provisions, another set of information requirements must be met when
electronic commerce rules are applicable. Most Irish consumers will have some familiarity with data
protection rules that prohibit email spamming and unsolicited SMS messages to promote goods and
services, but there are other rules of a Community origin.
7.18 In accordance with the Electronic Commerce Directive, the European Communities (Directive
2000/31/EC) Regulations 2003 24 contain obligations which a service provider using an electronic means
to communicate with consumers, must observe if the service provider is to lawfully engage in ecommerce
activities. These obligations will apply to insurance companies that respond to requests for information
from individuals and individual proposers and the overlap with the distance marketing of consumer
financial services is significant. In fact, the European Communities (Distance Marketing of Consumer
Financial Services) Regulations 2004 25 expressly provide that a distance contract for the supply of a
financial service is subject to regulations 13 and 14 of the Electronic Commerce Regulations as well as
the Distance Contracts Regulations.
7.19 Regulation 13 of the Electronic Commerce Regulations provide that where a contract is to be
concluded by electronic means, the relevant service provider shall ―clearly, comprehensively and
unambiguously and prior to the order being placed‖ provide information on the necessary technical steps
needed to conclude the contract, whether the contract will be filed and whether it will be accessible, the
technical means whereby input errors may be identified and corrected prior to the order being placed, and
the language or languages in which the contract may be concluded. The service provider must provide
the recipient of the service with terms and general conditions prior to contract in a way that allows the
recipient to store and reproduce them, and information on any applicable code of conduct must also be
made available prior to an order being placed or as soon as practicable thereafter. While there are
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SI No. 68 of 2003.
SI No. 853 of 2004.
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