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
Probability of one's living to a specific age according to a particular mortality table. Life expectancy is the beginning point in calculating the pure cost of life insurance and annuities ...
Irrevocable living trust (rights to make any changes are forfeited by the grantor permanently) in which the grantor forfeits control of all assets placed in the trust. However, the grantor ...
Society dedicated to the advancement of professional standards of risk management. Its membership is composed of risk and insurance managers of business organizations, public organizations, ...
Provision for coverage for buildings and personal property within the simplified commercial lines portfolio policy (sclp). The buildings and personal property coverage may be classified in ...
Coverage in the event of a marine loss. Marine loss is damage or destruction of a ship's hull and the ship's cargo (freight) as the result of the occurrence of an insured peril. Perils ...
Savings accounts that have tax advantages combined with health insurance plans for the benefit of the employee. Both the employee and the employer are permitted to contribute to the MSA. ...
Top state regulator of the insurance business who is either elected to office or appointed by a state to safeguard the interests of policyowners. ...
Value or cost of the actual net protection, in life insurance, in any year (face amount less reserve) according to the yearly renewal term rate used by an insurance company. ...
Type of policy with premiums that are fully paid up within a stated period. For example, a 20-payment life insurance policy has 20 annual premium payments, with no further premiums to be ...
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