Insurtech Briefly Podcast: Surplus Lines Market
Pennsylvania recently enacted two new insurance laws that significantly expand the permissible kinds of value-added products and services that may be provided by insurance licensees in general and the fees that may be charged...more
On May 21, 2021, the Illinois legislature passed SB 1753, which eliminates the surplus lines producers’ diligent search effort with respect to commercial risks when those risks are referred to the surplus lines producer by an...more
On April 14, 2021, the Maine’s Bureau of Insurance issued Bulletin 457 to explain the general conditions and requirements for surplus lines placements, and to reaffirm to producers their obligations and responsibilities under...more
On June 16, 2020, the Excess Line Association of New York (“ELANY”) issued Bulletin No. 2020-35, promulgating ELANY’s new issue of “ELANY Elaborates” (the “EE”). This issue of EE (available here) focuses primarily on the...more
COVID-19 is impacting all facets of the insurance industry, and while the surplus lines market is somewhat inoculated from the impact of various state orders and emergency regulations, many states as well as the National...more
On February 14, 2020, Illinois introduced legislation (SB3783) that would make significant changes in the manner certain surplus lines placements are made in Illinois. Illinois would be the latest state to amend their...more
One substantial area of ambiguity that permeates the surplus lines industry throughout the United States relates to the applicability of state law to surplus lines insurance carriers and brokers. This week, the Excess Line...more
On November 26th, Maine issued Bulletin 439 (the “Bulletin”) which provides, in granular detail, the criteria for placing insurance through the surplus lines market in the state. The Bulletin has received immediate and...more
I recently had occasion to read through the Illinois Surplus Line Law in detail when I noticed something interesting: surplus lines insurance companies may not be subject to the cap on bad faith damages usually applied to...more
Idaho has seen an impressive surge of surplus lines business over the last year, reporting a 15.7% increase from mid-year 2018 to mid-year 2019, and is now proposing new laws to further drive the growth of its surplus lines...more
The Surplus lines market has traditionally been a method for insurance placement available to property and casualty products only, although states are increasingly opening up other lines of insurance to the nonadmitted...more
New York Senate Bill S769A (the “Bill”) has failed to move in the New York Assembly despite its passage by the Senate and therefore is unlikely to become law in 2019. We had recently reported on the Bill’s potential impact...more
On June 10, 2019, Governor Phil Scott of Vermont signed Senate Bill 131 (the “Bill”) into law, permitting domestic surplus line insurers to offer and sell surplus lines insurance under a surplus lines certificate of authority...more
Add Nevada to the growing list of states that have adopted domestic surplus lines legislation. Senate Bill 86 (the “Bill”) was signed into law on June 1, 2019, with most provisions effective October 1, 2019. Of perhaps most...more
Texas’ legislature is considering bills that would amend Texas’ insurance code to clarify that eligible surplus lines insurers may offer windstorm and hail insurance in areas already served by the Texas Windstorm Insurance...more
On March 12, 2019, Nebraska joined the small but growing number of states to adopt “domestic” surplus lines legislation. Illinois was the first state to adopt domestic surplus lines legislation in 1998 but the trend only...more
One of the hallmarks of surplus lines regulation throughout the United States is the “diligent search” requirement whereby the surplus lines broker (or retail producer) must attempt to place insurance coverage in the admitted...more
The Texas Department of Insurance has repealed and replaced Chapter 15 of the Texas Administrative Code relating to surplus lines insurance. ...more
The Texas Department of Insurance has proposed to reorganize its Surplus Lines Insurance Chapter 15 in the Texas Administrative Code. ...more
South Carolina passed new legislation making numerous and streamlining changes to its captive insurance law. Included in the changes are: modified capital and surplus requirements, a new definition of a captive’s principal...more
The General Assembly returned to work today with a fresh spirit of cooperation. After delaying action Thursday on the compromise version of HB 159, the much-debated adoption bill, the Senate voted 53-2 to approve the...more