Connecticut Drops Affidavit Requirement

Connecticut House Bill 6379 will eliminate a requirement that executive affidavits be submitted showing a diligent search of the admitted market. Under the bill’s provisions, licensees and insureds must now submit signed statements to the effect that coverage was not available in the admitted market after a diligent search and that the amount of coverage procured is limited to the portion not available within the admitted market.

 Effective October 1, 2013, these statements are to be filed quarterly, due the 15th of February, May, August and November. Additional information regarding the policy is required in the signed statements, including type of policy and location of any real property insured. NAPSLO members can access more information about the bill through the StateNet portal of the NAPSLO website using their member ID and password.

Nevada Bulletin Clarifies Changes to Nonadmitted Laws

Nevada recently issued Bulletin 13-004 to inform all surplus lines brokers, and insureds who independently procure nonadmitted insurance, of changes to nonadmitted insurance statutes and regulations instituted as a result in federal or state legislation.  Some changes of note in the bulletin are that due diligence searches are now only required if Nevada is the home state of the insured and the insurer is not listed on the Quarterly Listing of Alien Insurers maintained by the NAIC; documentation of a diligent search is now to be made electronically through SLIP rather than through an affidavit.  Additionally, diligent searches are no longer required when dealing with an exempt commercial purchaser. 

Provisions requiring each insurance contract to include the signature and license number of the procuring broker were repealed.  Surplus lines transaction records are no longer required to be maintained separately from other records in a place of business, but the requirement to maintain records stand.  Statutes including eligibility and application requirements for nonadmitted insurance were repealed, as they were preempted by the NRRA and other legislation.  Regulations were amended to clarify that Nevada would collect premium taxes on a 100% home state tax basis.

Finally, the Department included language to reiterate to brokers and insureds that the primary difference between surplus lines and independently procured nonadmitted insurance was the absence of the broker in the transaction, emphasizing that if a broker was involved in the procurement of the policy in any manner then the policy cannot be considered independently procured.

Texas House of Representatives Recognizes Former NAPSLO President Gene Eisenmann

The House of Representatives of the 83rd Texas Legislature paid tribute to the memory of former NAPSLO Past President Eugene Eisenmann, who passed away on May 19th, with a resolution recognizing his career.

The resolution (HR 3073), unanimously adopted by a rising vote of the House on May 27, 2013, notes that Mr. Eisenman was a preeminent figure in the excess and surplus lines industry, and that he rose from “humble beginnings to leadership of a prestigious insurance enterprise; highly respected by his peers, he was admired for a benevolent management style that achieved spectacular results.”