SUNLIFE ASSURANCE COMPANY OF CANADA vs. The Hon. COURT OF APPEALS and Spouses ROLANDO andBERNARDA BACANIG.R. No.

105135 June 22, 1995 Principle found in the case: Element of concealment non disclosure of material fact that could mislead the insurerand affect in forming his estimates of the proposed insurance policy or in making inquiries. & two-year contestability period as recognized in Section 48 of The Insurance Code.

Facts: > On April 15, 1986, Bacani procured a life insurance contract for himself from Sun Life. He was issued a life insurance policy with double indemnity in case of accidental death. The designated beneficiary was his mother, Bernarda. > On June 26, 1987, the insured died in a plane crash. Bernarda Bacani filed a claim with Sun Life, seeking the benefits of the insurance. Sun Life conducted an investigation and its findings prompted it to reject the claim. > Sun Life discovered that 2 weeks prior to his application, Bacani was examined and confined at the Lung Center of the Philippines, where he was diagnosed for renal failure. During his confinement, the deceased was subjected to urinalysis, ultra-sonography and hematology tests. He did not reveal such fact in his application. > In its letter, Sun Life informed Berarda, that the insured did not disclosed material facts relevant to the issuance of the policy, thus rendering the contract of insurance voidable. A check representing the total premiums paid in the amount of P10,172.00 was attached to said letter. > Bernarda and her husband, filed an action for specific performance against Sun Life. RTC ruled for Bernarda holding that the facts concealed by the insured were made in good faith and under the belief that they need not be disclosed. Moreover, it held that the health history of the insured was immaterial since the insurance policy was "non-medical." CA affirmed. Issue: Whether or not the beneficiary can claim despite the concealment.

Held: NO. Section 26 of the Insurance Code is explicit in requiring a party to a contract of insurance to communicate to the other, in good faith, all facts within his knowledge which are material to the contract and as to which he makes no warranty, and which the other has no means of ascertaining. Materiality is to be determined not by the event, but solely by the probable and reasonable influence of the facts upon the party to whom communication is due, in forming his estimate of the disadvantages of the proposed contract or in making his inquiries (The Insurance Code, Sec 31) The terms of the contract are clear. The insured is specifically required to disclose to the insurer matters relating to his health. The information which the insured failed to disclose were material and relevant to the approval and the issuance of the insurance policy. The matters concealed would have definitely affected petitioner's action on his application, either by approving it with the corresponding adjustment for a higher premium or rejecting the same. Moreover, a disclosure may have warranted a medical examination of the insured by petitioner in order for it to reasonably assess the risk involved in accepting the application. Thus, "good faith" is no defense in concealment. The insured's failure to disclose the fact that he was hospitalized for two weeks prior to filing his application for insurance, raises grave doubts about his bonafides. It appears that such concealment was deliberate on his part. Anent the finding that the facts concealed had no bearing to the cause of death of the insured, it is well settled that the insured need not die of the disease he had failed to disclose to the insurer. It is sufficient that his non-disclosure misled the insurer in forming his estimates of the risks of the proposed insurance policy or in making inquiries (Henson v. The Philippine American Life Insurance Co., 56 O.G. No. 48 [1960]). We, therefore, rule that petitioner properly exercised its right to rescind the contract of insurance by reason of the concealment employed by the insured. It must be emphasized that rescission was exercised within the two-year contestability period as recognized in Section 48 of The Insurance Code.

G.R. No. 120959 November 14, 1996 PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. YIP WAI MING, accused-appellant. Facts given already by case no. 13
G.R. No. 120959 November 14, 1996
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. YIP WAI MING, accused-appellant. Facts: Accused-appellant Yip Wai Ming and victim Lam Po Chun, both Hongkong nationals, came to Manila on vacation on July 10, 1993. The two were engaged to be married. Hardly a day had passed when Lam Po Chun was brutally beaten up and strangled to death in their hotel room. On the day of the killing, July 11, 1993, Yip Wai Ming, was touring Metro Manila with Filipino welcomers while Lam Po Chun was left in the hotel room allegedly because she had a headache and was not feeling well enough to do the sights. RTC rendered decision convicting Yip Wai Ming of the crime of murder. Issue: WON the accused, Yip Wai Ming, has an insurable interest in the life of the victim, Lam Po Chun. Decision: There are other suspicious circumstances about the insurance angle. Lam Po Chun was working for the National insurance Company. Why then should she insure her life with the New Zealand Insurance Company? Lam's monthly salary was only HK $5,000.00. The premiums for the insurance were HK $5,400.00 or US $702.00 per month. Why should Lam insure herself with the monthly premiums exceeding her monthly salary? And why should any insurance company approve insurance, the premiums of which the supposed insured obviously con not afford to pay, in the absence of any showing that somebody else is paying for said premiums. It is not even indicated whether or not there are rules in Hongkong allowing a big amount of insurance to be secured where the beneficiary is not a spouse, a parent, a sibling, a child, or other close relative. (FROM THE BOOK: Under our law, in order that one may have an insurable interest in the life of another, it must be one of those mentioned in ([a], [b], [c], and [d]) in Section 10 of the Insurance Code, i.e., the interest is pecuniary or founded upon the close relationship between the parties. Hence, the mere fact that two persons are engaged to be married does not give one an insurable interest in the life of the other.)

About Sec 49 as a mere application , no contract yet The authenticity of the document has thus not been duly established. Exhibit "X" was secured in Hongkong when Lam Chi Keung, the brother of the victim, learned that his sister was murdered in Manila. It is not shown how and from whom the information about any alleged insurance having been secured came. There is no signature indicating that the victim herself applied for the insurance. There is no marking in Exhibit "X" of any entry which purports to be the victim's signature. There is a signature of Apple Lam which is most unusual for an insurance application because the victim's name is Lam Po Chun. To be sure nobody insures himself or herself under a nickname. The entries in the form are in block letters uniformly written by one hand. Below the printed name "Lam Po Chun" are Chinese characters which presumably are the Chinese translation of her name. Nobody was presented to identify the author of the "block" handwriting. Neither the prosecution nor the trial court made any comparisons, such as the signature of Lam Po Chun on her passport (Exh. "C"), with her purported signature or any other entry in the form.

It needs not much emphasis to say that an application form does not prove that insurance was secured. Anybody can get an application form for insurance, fill it up at home before filing it with the insurance company. In fact, the very first sentence of the form states that it merely "forms the basis of a contract between you and NZI Life." There was no contract yet.