The Analysis Of The Insurability Of Punitive Damage

The punitive damage comes of common law, under which the inflicter shall take on much higher damage than that of making up for the casualty' s actual loss. This is different from compensatory damage. In the key period of reform and development in our country, such problems as product safety appear along with the soaring economy, like the event of "three deer poisonous powdered milk" . So the punitive damage is required urgently to regulate the market and enterprise operators. But it also needs other relative systems to disperse risk, otherwise the internecine result would come out. In terms of the requirements to regulate economy market and encourage the development of enterprises in small and middle scale, the theory and practice of other countries and districts should be refered to when constructing the system of punitive damage. Then this article studies how to link up punitive damage and relevant insurance system effectively, focusing on the problem of the insurability of punitive damage, so that the functions of each system can be exerted well. Besides, it analyzes the relevance between punitive damage and insurance based on the functions and characters of punitive damage, with the hope that it can be helpful for the construction and perfection of punitive damage and other relevant systems. In fact, the author thinks that the problem of the insurability of punitive damage concerns the connection between punitive damage and liability insurance, so the functions of the system and the theory of insurance should be fully considered, on the basis of that, the insurability of punitive damage in different forms should be analyzed one by one. Further more, in light of the theory and practice of domestic insurance law, it concludes that under the current insurance law, punitive damage can be insurable, but in insurance practice, the products of liability insurance don' t specify whether the punitive damage is insurable. In terms of that, the problem of insurability should be clarified in form of guillotine cutting or distinguishing different premium rates.