When “All Originals” Really Means All Originals — Insurance Policies under LC

In documentary credit practice, few phrases cause as much confusion as “all originals must be presented.” This Q&A looks at what happens when an insurance policy under LC says “3 originals issued” — and why missing even one can turn a clean presentation into a discrepancy.

QUESTION

Dear Mr. Old Man,

We issued an LC with a condition that one original Insurance Policy must be presented to the issuing bank, and another original must be sent directly to the applicant.

The documents presented include one copy of the insurance policy to the issuing bank, and one original to the applicant. The policy states “one original issued.”

Is it a discrepancy?

Also, according to Article 28 of UCP 600, all originals of the insurance policy must be presented. The LC requires two originals, but the insurance policy shows that it was issued in three originals.

Would it be a discrepancy if only two originals were presented?

Thank you very much for your assistance.

H.

________

ANSWER

Dear H.,

Thank you for your question. Let’s unpack this carefully — because with insurance documents under LC, the phrase “all originals” carries real weight.

According to ISBP 821 paragraph K8, when a credit requires the insurance document to be issued in more than one original, or when the document itself indicates that it has been issued in more than one original, all originals must be presented, and they must appear to have been signed.

In view of these guidelines:

1. First scenario

The LC requires one original insurance policy to be presented to the issuing bank and another to be sent directly to the applicant.

If the presenter submits only a copy to the issuing bank, that is a discrepancy, since the LC explicitly calls for an original.

Possible discrepancy wording: “Insurance policy – copy presented instead of original as required.”

1. Second scenario

When the insurance policy itself states that it was issued in three originals, then all three originals must be presented, in line with UCP 600 article 28(b) and ISBP 821 K8.

Presenting only two originals in such a case would also constitute a discrepancy, even if the LC itself required fewer.

In short:

• Follow the LC condition when it specifies a number of originals.
• But if the document itself says “3 originals issued”, all three must be presented. Presenting fewer is a discrepancy.

That’s one of those small but tricky areas where documentary credit rules insist on precision — and where one missing “original” can make the whole presentation fall short.

By the way, the same rule is also applies to multimodal transport documents, bills of lading, non-negotiable sea waybills and charter party bills of lading.

Best regards,

Mr. Old Man