Imputed knowledge

Knowledge of one party that is deemed to be possessed by another because of their relationship. An insured may wish to impute knowledge to the insurer on the grounds that their agent actually possesses that knowledge. In insurance, the position is complicated because for some purposes the intermediary acts as agent of the insurer while for others (e.g. carrying out instructions to effect the insurance) he is agent of the insured. The party relying upon the doctrine of imputed knowledge must prove the existence of an agency in relation to the point at issue.