Finance Act 1995

91 Employee liabilities and indemnity insurance

(1) After section 201 of the Taxes Act 1988 there shall be inserted the following section—

“201AA Employee liabilities and indemnity insurance

(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, the following may be deducted from the emoluments of any office or employment to be assessed to tax, if defrayed out of those emoluments, that is to say—

(a) any amount paid in or towards the discharge of a qualifying liability of the person who is the holder of the office or employment;

(b) costs or expenses incurred in connection with any claim that that person is subject to such a liability or with any proceedings relating to or arising out of such a claim; and

(c) so much (if any) of any premium paid under a qualifying contract of insurance as relates to the indemnification of that person against a qualifying liability or to the payment of any such costs or expenses.

(2) For the purposes of this section a liability is a qualifying liability, in relation to any office or employment, if it is imposed either—

(a) in respect of any acts or omissions of a person in his capacity as the holder of that office or employment or in any other capacity in which he acts in the performance of the duties of that office or employment; or

(b) in connection with any proceedings relating to or arising out of a claim that a person is subject to a liability imposed in respect of any such acts or omissions.

(3) For the purposes of this section a qualifying contract of insurance is a contract of insurance which—

(a) so far as the risks insured against are concerned, relates exclusively to one or more of the matters mentioned in subsection (4) below;

(b) is not connected with any other contract;

(c) does not contain provision entitling the insured, in addition to cover for the risks insured against and any right to renew the policy, to receive any payment or other benefit the entitlement to which is something to which a significant part of the premium under the contract is reasonably attributable; and

(d) is a contract the period of insurance under which does not exceed two years (except by virtue of one or more renewals each for a period of two years or less) and is not a contract which the insured is required to renew for any period.

(4) The matters referred to in subsection (3)(a) above in relation to any contract of insurance are the following, that is to say—

(a) the indemnification of any person holding any office or employment against any qualifying liability;

(b) the indemnification of any person against any vicarious liability in respect of acts or omissions giving rise, in the case of another, to such a qualifying liability;

(c) the payment of some or all of the costs or expenses incurred by or on behalf of that or any other person in connection with any claim that a person is subject to a liability to which the insurance relates or with any proceedings relating to or arising out of such a claim; and

(d) the indemnification of any person against any loss from the payment by him (whether or not in discharge of any liability) to a person holding an office or employment under him of any amount in respect of a qualifying liability or of any such costs or expenses.

(5) For the purposes of this section a contract of insurance is connected with another contract at any time at or after the time when they have both been entered into if—

(a) either of them was entered into by reference to the other or with a view to enabling the other to be entered into on particular terms or to facilitating the other being entered into on particular terms; and

(b) the terms on which either of them was entered into would have been significantly different if it had not been entered into in anticipation of the other being entered into or if the other had not also been entered into.

(6) Two or more contracts of insurance shall not be prevented by virtue of paragraph (b) of subsection (3) above from being qualifying contracts if—

(a) they each satisfy the requirements of paragraphs (a), (c) and (d) of that subsection; and

(b) the only respects in which there is a significant difference between the terms on which any of those contracts is entered into and what would have been those terms if the other contract or contracts had not been entered into consist in such reductions of premium as are reasonably attributable to—

(i) the fact that, where different contracts have been entered into as part of a single transaction, the premium under each of the contracts has been fixed by reference to the appropriate proportion of what would have been the premium under a single contract relating to all the risks covered by the different contracts; or

(ii) the fact that the contract in question contains a right to renew or is entered into by way of renewal or in pursuance of such a right.

(7) For the purpose of determining the different parts of any premium under any contract of insurance which are to be treated for the purposes of this section as paid in respect of the different risks, different persons and different offices and employments to which the contract relates, such apportionment of that premium shall be made as may be reasonable.

(8) Where it would be unlawful for a person under whom any other person holds any office or employment to enter into a contract of insurance in respect of liabilities of any description or in respect of costs or expenses of any description, no deduction may be made under this section in respect of—

(a) the discharge of any liability of that other person which is a liability of that description; or

(b) any costs or expenses incurred by or on behalf of that other person which are costs or expenses of that description.

(9) References in this section to a premium, in relation to a contract of insurance, are references to any amount payable under the contract to the insurer.”

(2) In sections 141(3), 142(2), 153(2) and 156(8) of that Act (which make provision, in relation to non-cash vouchers, credit-tokens, expenses and benefits in kind, about amounts which would have been deductible under certain provisions if paid out of a person’s emoluments), after “201”, in each case, there shall be inserted “201AA”.

(3) This section has effect for the year 1995-96 and subsequent years of assessment.