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6. The plea raised by the respondent that the agent while issuing the policy did not apprise him of the aforesaid special provisions of the policy and as a layman he was under the impression that the risk started from the date of commencement of the policy.

7. The cover note i.e. the first receipt with regard to issuance of the policy does not spell out this clause. The endorsement made in this document which is Annexure B is as under:-

Your proposal for Assurance as per particulars noted in the schedule has been accepted by the corporation as proposed at Ordinary Rates/with AB & EDB.
 

8. We have taken a view that whenever cover note is issued in the aforesaid form the cover should contain at least the exclusion clause or that clause which disentitles the assured the claim amount in certain eventuality. What is mentioned here in this first premium receipt is that the acceptance of the payment places the Corporation on risk with effect from the date of this Acceptance-Cum-First Premium Receipt or if the proposal is under the Children Deferred Assurance Plan from the deferred date of terms & Conditions which will be sent shortly. The policy of assurance runs into several pages and printed in micro print and ordinarily a layman would take cover note as the policy covering the risk. In this cover there is no mention as to the date of commencement of risk of the Children deferred Assurance Plan.

9. To expect a layman or assured to go through the entire bunch of paper containing policy of assurance, large number of terms and conditions of the policy without having been explained and having obtained signatures of the assured thereof after obtaining endorsement that these terms and conditions have been explained and are correct, the Insurance Company cannot invoke exclusion clause, which provide the date of commencement of risk. Date of commencement of the risk under the Children Deferred Assurance Plan should have been specifically mentioned in the cover note.

Acceptance of the payment places the Corporation on risk w.e.f. the date of this Acceptance-cum-First Premium Receipt.
 

13. Every beneficiary contract has to be provided and receive beneficial interpretation. If a layman on reading cover note gets the impression that risk is covered from the date of acceptance-cum-first premium receipt of insurance, then the interpretation should be provided to the effect that the risk did not commence after four years from the date of issue of the policy or cover note.