1.1 Introduction

Over one hundred years after some of the original legislation the UK has concluded a series of insurance law reforms resulting in three new Acts of Parliament. These are based on extensive consultation with the insurance market and policyholders undertaken by the UK law reform bodies - the Law Commissions in England, Wales and Scotland. Amongst other changes the reforms have created a new framework for the provision and transfer of information when insurance is purchased and have provided new remedies for insurers. The concept of proportionality, which is familiar in many other jurisdictions, has been introduced into English insurance law. Due to the large amount of international insurance written in London the reforms are likely to have a considerable effect outside the UK.