40-905. Statement of value in policy; evidence of ownership of property; exceptions.
40-905
40-905. Statement of value in policy; evidence of ownership of property;exceptions.(a) (1) Whenever any policy of insurance or an increase in the amount ofcoveragein an existing policy of insurance shall be written to insure anyimprovements upon real property in this state against loss by fire,tornado, windstorm or lightning, and the property insured shall be whollydestroyed, without criminal fault on the part of the insured orthe insured's assigns, the amount of insurance written in such policy shall betakenconclusively to be the true value of the property insured, and the trueamount of loss and measure of damages, and the payment of money as apremium for insurance shall be prima facie evidence that the partypaying for such insurance is the owner of the property insured.
(2) Improvements on real property shall not be required to be insured formore than thereasonably estimated replacement cost of such improvements. Nothing hereinshall prohibit a policy or endorsement to a policy as described in thissubsection from containing an inflation guard provision or similar provision.Nothing in this section shall be deemed to create a private cause ofaction. For the purposes of this paragraph, "improvements on real property"means a fixture, building or other structure attached to real property andintended as a permanent addition to such real property.
(b) The provisions of subsection (a) shall not apply to:
(1) New policies of fire insurance or existing policies of fire insurancewhere there has been an increase in the amount of coverage of 25% or more,until such policies have been in effect for at least 60 days. If thereis a total loss by fire within the sixty-day period and the insurer paysless than the face value of the policy, the insurer shall refund the differencein premium between the amount of insurance purchased and the premium applicablefor the amount of the loss actually paid. This paragraph shall not applyto a loss by fire caused by lightning.
(2) Builder's risk policies of insurance covering property in the processof being constructed. The value of the property insured shall be the actualvalue of the property at the time of the loss.
History: L. 1927, ch. 231, 40-905; L. 1981, ch. 192, § 1;L. 2005, ch. 163, § 9; July 1.