During the last few years, many states have undertaken aggressive efforts to collect sales tax on amounts paid for service contracts a/k/a extended warranties, which in most states are deemed not to be insurance products. A recent example of this effort is the South Carolina Administrative Law Court’s decision in
Read More SC Court Says Sales Tax Inapplicable to Cellphone Insurance Premiums
Regulatory
TRIA Data Call In Development for 2016
In light of the reauthorization of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (“TRIA”) earlier this year, a growing focus within the industry has been on the collection of data on terrorism risk exposure from insurers to help assess company solvency and market trends in light of particular changes to TRIA. As…
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More Senior Staff Changes at the Texas Department of Insurance
After 24 years of service with the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI), General Counsel Sara Wait will be retiring in December 2015. Wait has had a distinguished career at TDI after starting as a law clerk in TDI’s liquidation division and serving two stints at a private law firm.
On…
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ELANY Hires Former New York Regulator as Financial Director
The Excess Line Association of New York (ELANY) has hired James Davis as financial director. Davis is responsible for the financial review and analysis of all eligible listed excess line insurers to verify their financial strength.
Davis recently retired from the New York State Department of Financial Services (“the Department”)…
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Illinois Insurance Department Proposes Amendment to Cumbersome Records Retention and Destruction Requirements
The Illinois Department of Insurance (“ IL DOI”) has proposed an amendment to Illinois’ insurer record retention requirements, which would significantly reduce reporting, book-keeping and retention obligations. The current regulation, 50 Ill. Adm. Code 901.20, requires that, prior to destruction, Illinois domestic insurers submit to the IL DOI an affidavit…
New Texas Medical Stop-Loss Rules Drafted by Texas Department of Insurance
Within an environment of increased federal and state regulatory emphasis on health insurance related issues arising due to the passage by the U.S. Congress of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, the Texas Department of Insurance (“TDI”) has drafted new and potentially transformative rules relating to medical…
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NAIC Panel Approval May Pave Way Towards Elimination of Variable Annuity Captives
A panel of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (“NAIC”) recently approved a preliminary framework that may pave the way towards eliminating variable annuities captive reinsurance transactions. The framework, which changes parts of the capital and reserve framework that creates incentives to use such captives, is scheduled to be discussed…
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NAIC Cybersecurity “Bill of Rights” Wrong to Many Insurers
Last week, an NAIC task force moved forward in recommending a cybersecurity “bill of rights” that insurance regulators could provide consumers, essentially creating an expectation of notice of a breach “never more than 60 days” after a breach, and the right to one year of free credit monitoring. Insurance industry…
Read More NAIC Cybersecurity “Bill of Rights” Wrong to Many Insurers
Many Insurers to be Filing ORSA’s for the First Time in the 4th Quarter
The majority of states have now adopted the ORSA Model Law and the first filings are officially due by the end of 2015. The NAIC has been conducting an ORSA pilot project for the last 3 years and many companies participated. The participating companies received valuable input regarding their ORSA …
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California Governor Signs Long-term Care Insurance Bill
On October 6, 2015 California’s Governor Jerry Brown signed into law Senate Bill 575, requiring annual notifications of certain nonforfeiture benefits under long-term care insurance contracts. Under current law, an insurer is required to offer, at the time of application for a long-term care insurance contract, an option to purchase…
Read More California Governor Signs Long-term Care Insurance Bill