P&I – Protection and Indemnity; Protecting and Indemnity.

P&I CLUB – Protection and Indemnity Club.

PARTIAL LOSS – A loss under an insurance policy which does not either (1) completely destroy or render worthless the Insured property, or (2) exhaust the insurance applying thereto.

PARTICULAR AVERAGE – In marine insurance, partial loss of the subject matter insured caused by an insured peril.

PERIL – Cause of a possible loss. For example, fire, theft, or hail.

PERILS OF THE SEAS – Fortuitous accidents which cause loss of or damage to hull or cargo covered by a marine policy. The ordinary action of wind and waves is not a peril of the sea.

PERSONAL INJURY – Injury other than bodily injury arising out of false arrest or detention, malicious prosecution, wrongful entry or eviction, libel or slander, or violation of a person's right to privacy committed other than in the course of advertising, publishing, broadcasting or telecasting.

PERSONAL PROPERTY – Any property of an Insured other than real property. Homeowner policies protect the personal property of family members, and commercial forms are used to protect many types of business personal property of an Insured.

PERSONAL PROPERTY LIMITATIONS – Don't assume everything you own is adequately Insured by a standard homeowner's policy. The typical homeowner's policy provides only limited coverage for many expensive items. Extra coverage can be purchased separately.

PHYSICAL DAMAGE – A generic term indicating actual damage to property.

PHYSICAL HAZARD – The material, structural, or operational features of the risk itself, apart from the moral hazards of the persons owning or managing it.

PILFERAGE – Petty theft, especially theft of articles in less than package lots.

POLICY – Legal document issued to the Insured setting out the terms of the contract of insurance.

POLICY ASSIGNMENT – The transfer of beneficial rights in a policy form the insured to another party. The insured becomes the “assignor” and the other party becomes the “assignee”.

POLICY CONDITIONS – The conditions expressed in the policy document and any endorsements attached thereto.

POLICY EXPIRATION DATE – The date when your current insurance policy expires. This date can be found on your current policy renewal schedule, insurance identification card, or recent cancellation notice. This date is not to be confused with the date of your next payment or the date when your renewal payment is due.

POLICY LIMIT – The maximum amount a policy will pay, either overall or under a particular coverage.

POLICY PERIOD (OR TERM) – The period during which the policy contract provides protection, e.g., six months or one or three years.

POLICYHOLDER – The person (or persons) whose risk of financial loss from an Insured peril is protected by the policy.

POLLUTION – Waste material which cannot be absorbed by the surroundings in which it is discharged.

POLLUTION EXCLUSION CLAUSE – A clause which excludes claims for legal liability of the insured in connection with pollution or contamination of the environment.

PORT RISKS INSURANCE – A type of marine insurance by which a ship is insured whist it is in the confines of a specified port area. An alternative form of cover allows the ship to navigate outside the port area.

PREMISES – The particular location of property or a portion thereof as designated in a policy.

PREMIUM – The amount of money an Insurance Company charges for insurance coverage.

PRIMARY RESIDENCE – The place where you will reside for the majority of your policy term.

PRINCIPLE DRIVER – The person who drives the car most often.

PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY INSURANCE – Liability insurance to indemnify professionals, doctors, lawyers, architects, etc. for loss or expense resulting from claim on account of bodily injuries because of any malpractice, error, or mistake committed or alleged to have been committed by the Insured in his profession.

PROHIBITED RISK – Any class of business which an Insurance Company will not insure under any condition.

PROOF OF LOSS – A formal statement made by the Insured to the Insurance Company regarding a loss. The purpose of the proof of loss is to place before the Company sufficient information concerning the loss to enable it to determine its liability under the policy.

PROPERTY DAMAGE LIABILITY – Pays when an Insured person is legally liable for damage to the property of others caused by your vehicle or your operation of most non-owned vehicles. This coverage also pays for your legal defence costs if you are sued.

PROPERTY INSURANCE – Property Insurance indemnifies an Insured whose property is stolen, damaged, or destroyed by a covered peril. The term property insurance includes direct or indirect property losses covered in several lines of insurance.

PROTECTION – (1) Term used interchangeably with the word "coverage" to denote the insurance provided under the terms of a policy. (2) Term used to indicate the existence of fire-fighting facilities in an area known as a "protected" area.


PROTECTION AND INDEMNITY RISKS – Legal liabilities of shipowners which are not generally insurable in the ordinary hull insurance market are covered by a P&I Club.

PROTEST – A declaration signed by the master of a ship in respect of damage to cargo.

PROXIMATE CAUSE - Every event is the outcome of a chain (or net) of previous events, but in the words of Bacon "It were infinite for the law to consider the causes of causes, and their impulsions one of another; therefore it contenteth itself with the immediate cause". This immediate or effective cause, not necessarily that closest in time to the event, is termed the proximate cause.
Unless the insurance policy otherwise provides the Insurer is liable for any loss which is proximately caused by an insured peril.

PUNITIVE DAMAGES – In an action for liability, damages awarded by a Court as a punishment against the defendant.