State Supervision And Regulation
Primary responsibility for overseeing the insurance industry that has rested with individual states since 1945, after Congress passed the MCCARRAN-FERGUSON ACT (PUBLIC LAW 15). In addition to supervision and regulation, states receive taxes and fees paid by the industry that amount to several billion dollars a year. State insurance laws are administered by state insurance departments that are responsible for making certain that (1) rates are adequate, not unfairly discriminatory, and not unreasonably high, and (2) insurance companies in the state are financially sound and able to pay future claims. To this end, states set requirements for company reserves, require annual financial statements, and examine company books. Each state has an insurance commissioner or superintendent who is either elected or appointed by the governor, with responsibility for investigating company practices, approving rates and policy forms, and ordering liquidation of insolvent insurers. The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF INSURANCE COMMISSIONERS (NAIC) has drafted model legislation and worked for policy uniformity, but regulations vary widely from state to state.
Whether insurers should be regulated by the states or the federal government remains at issue, but so far insurers and the NAIC lobbying have been effective in resisting federal regulation. Nevertheless, the federal government has a profound effect on the insurance industry through its taxes and a variety of regulations.
Popular Insurance Terms
Present value of future benefits. This type of reserve would be applicable for single premium life insurance, paid-up insurance, single premium annuity, and a paid-up annuity. ...
Amount, not in excess of $10,000 per year, given to each of an unlimited number of donees free of federal estate tax and gift tax. Each individual can give up to $10,000 to any one donee, ...
In many health insurance and dental insurance policies, stipulation that, if the estimated cost of a recommended plan of treatment exceeds a specified sum, the insured must submit the plan ...
Type of hold-harmless agreement made by a property owner as a condition for being served by a railroad spur. If the owner wants a special sidetrack, the railroad requires the owner to ...
Dividend paid to policy-holder according to the time period in which the policy was sold and the investment return the insurance company made on that policy during that time period. ...
In property insurance policy, clause that stipulates that if legislative acts or acts of the insurance commissioner's office expand the coverage of an insurance policy or endorsement forms ...
Coverage for motorized vehicles, each of which requires separate policies for property damage and liability exposures. Motorized vehicles are not covered under a homeowners insurance policy ...
Coverage to indemnify an owner for whom work was done if the completed work is not free of worker's liens for labor and material. ...
Pension plan that allows an employee to contribute by electing to have money deducted from each paycheck. Some qualified plans such as 401 (k) allow employees to contribute pre-tax dollars, ...
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