SB355 Alabama 2013 Session

To repeal portions of Title 27 of the Code of Alabama 1975

Relating to the Alabama Insurance Code, to repeal the following: 27-3-3 A foreign insurer may transact business in this state without certificate of authority for the purpose, and to the extent only, of investing its funds in real estate located in this state, or in securities secured thereby, by complying with the requirements of Amendment 154 of the Constitution of Alabama. Such an insurer shall not be subject to any other provisions of this title. 27-3-4 To qualify for and hold authority to transact insurance in this state, an insurer must be otherwise in compliance with this title and with its charter powers and must be an incorporated stock insurer or an incorporated mutual insurer or a reciprocal insurer, all of the same general type as may be formed as a domestic insurer under this title; except that: (1) No foreign insurer shall be authorized to transact insurance in this state which does not maintain reserves as required by Chapter 36 of this title applicable to the kind, or kinds, of insurance transacted by such insurer, wherever transacted in the United States, or which transacts insurance in the United States on the assessment premium plan, stipulated premium plan, cooperative plan or any similar plan; (2) Any foreign insurer which has transacted insurance as an authorized insurer in its state or country of domicile for less than five years shall not be authorized to transact insurance in this state unless it is otherwise qualified for such authority under this code and is: a. The wholly owned subsidiary of an insurer authorized to transact insurance in this state; b. The continuing corporation resulting from a merger or consolidation of insurers at least one of which insurers has been an authorized insurer in its state or country of domicile for at least five years; or c. Is in compliance with the requirements as to capital and surplus provided therefor under Sections 27-3-7 and 27-3-8; (3) The commissioner shall not grant or continue authority to transact insurance in this state as to any insurer the management of which is found by him, after thorough investigation, to be incompetent or untrustworthy, or so lacking in insurance company managerial experience as to make the proposed operation hazardous to the insurance-buying public or which, after thorough examination or investigation, he has good reason to believe is affiliated directly or indirectly through ownership, control, reinsurance transactions, or other insurance or business relations with any person, or persons, whose business operations are, or have been, marked to the injury of insurers, stockholders, policyholders, creditors or the public by manipulation of assets, of accounts or of reinsurance or by bad faith; (4) No insurer the voting control of which is held, in whole or substantial part, by any government or governmental agency shall be authorized to transact insurance in this state. Membership in a mutual insurer or subscribership in a reciprocal insurer shall not be deemed to be either an ownership or control of the insurer for the purposes of this subdivision; and (5) Lloyd's plan insurers may be authorized to transact insurance in this state as provided in Section 27-3-16. 27-3-5 (a) No insurer shall be authorized to transact insurance which has or uses a name so similar to that of another insurer already so authorized as likely to mislead the public. (b) No life insurer shall be so authorized which has or uses a name deceptively similar to that of another insurer authorized to transact insurance in this state within the preceding 10 years if life insurance policies originally issued by such other insurer are still outstanding in this state. (c) No insurer shall be so authorized which has or uses a name which tends to deceive or mislead as to the type of organization of the insurer. (d) In case of conflict of names hereafter between two insurers, or a conflict otherwise prohibited under the foregoing subsections of this section, the commissioner may permit or require, as a condition to the issuance of an original certificate of authority to an applicant insurer, that such insurer shall use in Alabama such supplementation or modification of its name or such business name as may reasonably be necessary to avoid such conflict. No such name, supplementation or modification shall contain the principal identifying factor contained in the name of any other insurer already authorized to transact insurance in this state. 27-3-6 An insurer which otherwise qualifies therefor may be authorized to transact any one kind or combination of kinds of insurance as defined in Chapter 5 of this title, except: (1) A life insurer may grant annuities and shall be authorized to transact in addition only disability insurance, and no insurer shall be authorized to transact life insurance in this state which transacts anywhere any kind of insurance in addition to life and disability insurances and annuities; except, that the commissioner shall, if the insurer otherwise qualifies therefor, continue to so authorize any life insurer which, immediately prior to the effective date of this title, was lawfully authorized to transact in this state a kind or kinds of insurance in addition to life and disability; (2) A reciprocal or Lloyd's plan insurer shall not transact life insurance; and (3) A title insurer shall be a stock insurer and shall transact no other kind of insurance; except, that the commissioner may continue to so authorize any insurer which immediately prior to the effective date of this title was lawfully authorized to transact and was lawfully writing in this state a kind, or kinds, of insurance in addition to title insurance. 27-3-7 (a) To qualify for authority to transact any one kind of insurance, as defined in Chapter 5 of this title, or combination of kinds of insurance as shown below, an insurer applying for its original certificate of authority in this state after the effective date of this title or continuing such original certificate of authority shall possess and thereafter maintain unimpaired paid-in capital stock, if a stock insurer, or unimpaired surplus, if a foreign mutual or foreign reciprocal insurer, in amount not less than as applicable under the schedule below and shall possess when first so authorized such additional funds as surplus as are required under Section 27-3-8: Kind or kinds of insurance Minimum capital or surplus required Life $800,000.00 Disability 500,000.00 Life and disability 800,000.00 Property 300,000.00 Marine 300,000.00 Casualty 400,000.00 Surety 350,000.00 Title 200,000.00 Multiple lines - Any two or more: Property, marine, casualty, surety; and all kinds of insurance other than title and life insurance 500,000.00 (b) An insurer holding a valid certificate of authority to transact insurance in this state immediately prior to the effective date of this title may continue to be authorized to