CHAPTER 62
HB 184 – FINAL VERSION
11Mar2015… 0111h
2015 SESSION
01/10
HOUSE BILL 184
AN ACT relative to travel insurance.
SPONSORS: Rep. Hunt, Ches 11; Rep. Gidge, Hills 33; Sen. Carson, Dist 14; Sen. Lasky, Dist?13
COMMITTEE: Commerce and Consumer Affairs
This bill establishes procedures for the sale of travel insurance. Under this bill, the insurance commissioner may issue a license which authorizes a limited lines travel insurance producer to sell, solicit, or negotiate travel insurance through a licensed insurer.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
11Mar2015… 0111h
15-0127
01/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Fifteen
AN ACT relative to travel insurance.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
62:1 New Chapter; Sale of Limited Lines Travel Insurance. Amend RSA by inserting after chapter 402-K the following new chapter:
CHAPTER 402-L
SALE OF LIMITED LINES TRAVEL INSURANCE
402-L:1 Definitions. In this chapter:
I. “Commissioner” means the insurance commissioner.
II. “Designated responsible producer” means an employee, who is a licensed individual producer, of the limited lines travel insurance producer who has designated the employee as responsible for the limited lines travel insurance producer’s compliance with this chapter.
III. “Limited lines travel insurance producer” means a:
(a) Licensed managing general underwriter;
(b) Licensed managing general agent or third party administrator; or
(c) Licensed insurance producer, including a limited lines producer.
IV. “Offer and disseminate” means providing general information, including a description of the coverage and price, as well as processing the application, collecting premiums, and performing other non-licensable activities permitted by the state.
V.(a) “Travel insurance” means insurance coverage for personal risks incident to planned travel, including but not limited to:
(1) Interruption or cancellation of a trip or event;
(2) Loss of baggage or personal effects;
(3) Damages to accommodations or rental vehicles; or
(4) Sickness, accident, disability or death occurring during travel.
(b) Travel insurance shall not include major medical plans, which provide comprehensive medical protection for travelers with trips lasting 12 months or longer, including those persons working overseas or military personnel being deployed.
VI. “Travel retailer” means a business entity that makes, arranges, or offers travel services and may offer and disseminate travel insurance as a service to its customers on behalf of and under the direction of a limited lines travel insurance producer.
402-L:2 Requirements.
I. Pursuant to the provisions of RSA 402-J, the commissioner may issue to an individual or business entity that has filed with the commissioner an application for such limited license, a limited lines travel insurance producer license, which authorizes the limited lines travel insurance producer to sell, solicit or negotiate travel insurance through a licensed insurer.
II.(a) A travel retailer may offer and disseminate travel insurance on behalf of and under a limited lines travel insurance producer business entity license only if the following conditions are met:
(1) The limited lines travel insurance producer or travel retailer provides to purchasers of travel insurance:
(A) A description of the material terms or the actual material terms of the insurance coverage;
(B) A description of the process for filing a claim;
(C) A description of the review or cancellation process for the travel insurance policy; and
(D) The identity and contact information of the insurer and the limited lines travel insurance producer.
(2) At the time of licensure, the limited lines travel insurance producer establishes and maintains a register, on a form prescribed by the commissioner, listing each travel retailer that offers travel insurance on the limited lines travel insurance producer’s behalf. The register shall be maintained and updated annually by the limited lines travel insurance producer and shall include the name, address, and contact information of the travel retailer and an officer or person who directs or controls the travel retailer’s operations, and the travel retailer’s federal tax identification number. The limited lines travel insurance producer shall submit such register to the insurance department upon request. The limited lines travel insurance producer shall also certify, upon request, that the registered travel retailer complies with 18 U.S.C. section 1033.
(3) The designated responsible producer, president, secretary, treasurer, and any other officer or person who directs or controls the limited lines travel insurance producer’s insurance operations has complied with the fingerprinting requirements applicable to insurance producers in the resident state of the limited lines travel insurance producer.
(4) The limited lines travel insurance producer has paid all applicable insurance producer licensing fees.
(5) The limited lines travel insurance producer requires each employee and authorized representative of the travel retailer whose duties include offering and disseminating travel insurance to receive a program of instruction or training, which may be subject to review by the commissioner. The training material shall, at a minimum, contain instructions on the types of insurance offered, ethical sales practices, and required disclosures to prospective customers.
(b) Limited lines travel insurance producers, and those registered under its license, are exempt from all examination requirements.
III. Any travel retailer offering or disseminating travel insurance shall make available to prospective purchasers, brochures or other written materials that:
(a) Provide the identity and contact information of the insurer and the limited lines travel insurance producer;
(b) Explain that the purchase of travel insurance is not required in order to purchase any other product or service from the travel retailer; and
(c) Explain that an unlicensed travel retailer, is permitted to provide general information about the insurance offered by the travel retailer, including a description of the coverage and price, but is not qualified or authorized to answer technical questions about the terms and conditions of the insurance offered by the travel retailer or to evaluate the adequacy of the customer’s existing insurance coverage.
IV. A travel retailer’s employee, or authorized representative, who is not licensed as an insurance producer shall not:
(a) Evaluate or interpret the technical terms, benefits, and conditions of the offered travel insurance coverage;
(b) Evaluate or provide advice concerning a prospective purchaser’s existing insurance coverage; or
(c) Hold itself out as a licensed insurer, licensed producer, or insurance expert.
402-L:3 Registration; Policy.
I. A travel retailer whose insurance-related activities, and those of its employees and authorized representative, are limited to offering and disseminating travel insurance on behalf of and under the direction of a limited lines travel insurance producer meeting the conditions stated under this chapter, is authorized to do so and receive related compensation, upon registration by the limited lines travel insurance producer as described in RSA 402-L:2.
II. Travel insurance under this chapter may be provided under an individual policy or under a group or master policy.
402-L:4 Responsibility. As the insurer designee, the limited lines travel insurance producer shall be responsible for the acts of the travel retailer and shall use reasonable means to ensure compliance by the travel retailer with the provisions of this chapter.
402-L:5 Enforcement. The limited lines travel insurance producer and any travel retailer offering and disseminating travel insurance on behalf of the limited license travel insurance producer and under the limited lines travel insurance producers license shall be subject to RSA?417:4, VIII(e), RSA 402:J:12, and RSA 402-J:15.
62:2 Repeal. RSA 402:16-a, relative to travel agent insurance licensing, is repealed.
62:3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 90 days after its passage.
Approved: June 2, 2015
Effective Date: August 31, 2015