In insurances where fairness is so essential to the contract, a concealment which is only the effect of accident, negligence, inadvertence or mistake, if material, is equally fatal to the contract as if it were intentional and fraudulent. The insured is required to disclose all the circumstances within his own knowledge only, which increase the risk. He is not, however, bound to disclose general circumstances which apply to all policies of a particular description, notwithstanding they may greatly increase the risk. Under this rule, it has been decided that a policy is void, which was obtained by the concealment by the assured of the fact that he had heard that a vessel like his was taken. And in a case where the assured had information of a violent storm about eleven hours after his vessel had sailed, and had stated only that 'there had been blowing weather and severe storms on the coast after the vessel had sailed,' but without any reference to the particular storm it was decided that this was a concealment which vitiated the policy.
Fraudulent concealment avoids the contract.