What are some of the hidden risks?
Some of the most serious risks which are not
revealed by the records or by an examination of the abstract by covered
by a Cambridge Tile insurance policy are:
Marital Status of Owner Incorrectly Given
Under the law, one spouse may have n
interest in property owned, individually by another spouse. An
owner may say that he or she is single, although secretly married or
perhaps divorced in another state - resulting in a claim by a spouse or
former spouse whose existence was not suspected.
Undisclosed Heirs
When an owner dies and there is no will, the
courts must decide who the rightful heirs are. But even then, such
a decision by the court may not be final or binding on any heir who was
not notified of the proceeding. Even under a will, the court may
have to settle interpretations of the will. Cases of this kind
include children born after the date of the will and heirs overlooked
due to incorrect probate proceedings.
Mental Incompetence or Minors
A transfer of property by a minor or a
person adjudged to be mentally incompetent raises special problems.
To be valid and binding on a minor or incompetent, the transaction must
be made by guardians or appointed by the court. If a deed or
release was executed by a person who was a minor or under mental
disability at the time, the transaction may be void able or invalid.
Fraud and Forgery
The owner may have been fraudulently
impersonated. Deeds, releases or other documents may be forgeries.
Defective Deeds
A deed may have been delivered without
consent of the owner or after his or her death. A document may
have been executed under an expired power of attorney. The name of
the grantee may have been inserted in the deed after its delivery.
The officer of the corporation may not have been properly empowered to
act. In any such case, the action may result in loss of title.
Confusion Due to Similar or Identical Names
Despite a careful investigation to prevent
it, some confusion of identity is possible. For example, a
person's title to his or her land, established thirty years ago, may be
under the name Jonassen and the taxes may still be paid under that name
- but the lawsuits, marriages, divorces, wills may be under a simplified
family name, such as Johnson or Jansen. Or two members of the same
family may have the same name, as in the case of father and son - and
the title may be in one while the deed is executed by the other having
no title.
Errors in Records or Clerical Work
A document may be missed in searching.
Entries or indexing in records may be in error. Clerical errors
are infrequent, but do happen.
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