Double Indemnity - Title Insurance & the Torrens System

Abstract

This paper commences by explaining the nature and origins of title insurance. It then examines the potential for title insurance to cover the residual risks of the Torrens System, focussing on four problem areas: first, the lack of security and indemnity for purchasers of interests in registered land in the pre-registration period; secondly, the lack of security and indemnity for losses resulting from the existence of overriding interests not shown on the register; thirdly, fault-based exclusion or reduction of indemnity in some jurisdictions; and fourthly, the costs and procedural hurdles in accessing indemnity payments from the Torrens assurance funds. The paper concludes with an assessment of possible impacts of the title insurance industry on the administration of the Torrens System.