NLJ this week: Triple cover, single mistake?

The claimant, a housing trust, held three policies covering data breaches but only notified one, based on negligent broker advice. When losses exceeded the £6m recovered, the trust sued. The broker argued that ‘other insurance’ clauses limited total recovery to £5m. The court disagreed, ruling that the clauses cancelled each other out, entitling the claimant to the full £11m across all policies.

The judgment confirms that multiple insurance is lawful and beneficial—provided policies lack ‘rateable proportion’ clauses. For insureds, it’s a win for commercial common sense. For insurers, it’s a warning: if you want to limit liability, say so clearly. Brokers, meanwhile, are reminded that poor advice can prove costly.