City University of Hong Kong is suing one of the world's largest insurance firms for $16 million after it allegedly reneged on a tender to insure staff.
Counsel for City University Geoffrey Ma SC said Blue Cross (Asia-Pacific) Insurance Ltd had entered into a binding agreement when it was one of 10 insurance firms to tender a price for a group life and medical insurance plan in 1993.
Mr Ma told the Court of First Instance that Blue Cross had submitted a tender stating the premium for the medical insurance amounted to about $5.95 million and about $1.7 million for the life insurance. But he said the insurance firm withdrew its tender after one week only to submit a revised tender four days later. That too was withdrawn after six days.
Mr Ma said the university was claiming the difference between what would have been the premium paid to Blue Cross and what it paid for the actual premium over several years to Manulife, eventual tender winner.
Mr Ma said Blue Cross believed that if the correct figures were adopted, the premium quoted would have been more than $9.9 million.
The case before Deputy Judge Edward Woolley will continue today.