We are happy to provide the 2023 edition of our Excess and Surplus Lines Law Manual. This edition reflects all of the pertinent changes in the surplus lines laws and regulations of the 50 states and U.S. territories during the past year. The website provides you with the ability to click on the states and territories of interest to view the updates, and a PDF of the entire manual.
Read More Excess and Surplus Lines Law Manual 2023 Update

Join Locke Lord and InsurTechNY for their InsurTech Academy webinar series on legal and regulatory issues ‎impacting the InsurTech industry. Each quarter, we’ll tackle a new important topic, starting with a primer on ‎surplus lines insurance for InsurTechs.‎
Read More You’re Invited: InsurTech Legal Academy Webinar Presented by Locke Lord and InsurTechNY

The Connecticut General Assembly has proposed a bill that would permit owners of self-storage businesses to sell property insurance to their tenants.  Under Senate Bill 1037 (the “Bill”), an owner is required to obtain a self-service storage insurance license in order to sell such insurance and the insurance policy must be issued by an insurer that is authorized to write such lines of business in Connecticut.  The Bill would not require tenants of self-storage businesses to buy insurance.
Read More Connecticut Considers Self-Service Storage Insurance Licensing Requirements

Specialty insurer Beazley sponsored the first Cyber Insurance Catastrophe (CAT) bond recently, a new type of ILS or insurance linked security issued by a Bermuda entity. They announced the $45 million private placement on January 9, 2023. The bonds provide investors with a generous floating rate of interest and a return of principal in one year, provided that no single catastrophic event occurs across Beazley’s portfolio of cyber insurance policies that results in more than $300 million of losses. Any losses above $300 million incurred by Beazley on those policies as a result of that one event would be absorbed by the investors, up to the $45 million principal amount. The deal was marketed under an NDA, so not all of the details are available, but the bonds will not protect against losses from a state-sponsored cyberattack, which is typically excluded from cyber insurance policies as an act of war.
Read More A New Type of ILS Investment – Cyber Insurance CAT Bonds

At the December National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) Fall National Meeting, the Surplus Lines Working Group adopted changes to the IID Plan of Operation.  The updated Plan of Operation incorporates, among others, the changes noted in our October posting below.  The 2023 Plan of Operation is now available at the “Documents” tab of the Surplus Lines Working Group home page.”

On October 19, 2022, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) Surplus Lines Working Group exposed proposed changes to the International Insurers Department (IID) Plan of Operation applicable to insurers domiciled outside the U.S. (alien) participating in the U.S. insurance market.
Read More Update: LL Surplus Lines Series (Entry 35): Surplus Lines Working Group Exposes Changes to IID Plan of Operation for Alien Insurers

Locke Lord and the Association of Corporate Counsel – CT Chapter will host a complimentary webinar titled “Developments in State Privacy ‎Requirements for Connecticut ‎Businesses” on December 14, 2022.
Read More Complimentary Webinar: Developments in State Privacy ‎Requirements for Connecticut ‎Businesses

The Texas Department of Insurance (“TDI”) adopted a new group capital calculation filing requirement that is effective on November 7, 2022.  The new rule, found in 28 Texas Administrative Code   §7.215 (“Section 7.215”), is based on the National Association Insurance Commissioners (“NAIC”) model regulation that requires an insurer’s ultimate control person in an insurance holding company system to file a group capital calculation concurrently with the insurer’s annual registration (Form B).
Read More Texas Department of Insurance Adopts New Group Capital Calculation Rule

On October 13, 2022, the Illinois Department of Insurance (the “Department”) issued Company Bulletin 2022-16 (the “Bulletin”).  The Bulletin is addressed to all domestic insurers and advises that the Department will now participate in the National Association of Insurance Commissioners Climate Risk Disclosure Survey (the “Survey”).
Read More Illinois to Participate in the Climate Risk Disclosure Survey