Ohio Revised Code Search

...Within six months after the effective date of this section, the superintendent of insurance shall adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to carry out the purposes of sections 3915.21 to 3915.24 of the Revised Code. The rules shall include criteria for the payment of accelerated benefits, disclosure requirements, and actuarial standards.

... As used in this chapter: (A) "Advertising" means any written, electronic, or printed communication or any communication by means of recorded telephone messages or transmitted on radio, television, the internet, or similar communications media, including, but not limited to, film strips, motion pictures, and videos, that is published, disseminated, circulated, or placed directly or indirectly before the public in ...

... (A) Notwithstanding division (C) of this section, no person shall operate in this state as a viatical settlement provider or viatical settlement broker without first having obtained a license from the superintendent of insurance and, if the owner of the policy to be viaticated is not a resident of this state, from the comparable official of the state of residence of the owner if that state issues licen...

... (A) Except as provided in division (H) of this section, an applicant for a license as a viatical settlement provider or viatical settlement broker shall submit an application for the license in a manner prescribed by the superintendent of insurance. The application shall be accompanied by a fee established by the superintendent by rule adopted in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code. (B) A license issu...

...Any corporation, partnership, or other business that is licensed as a viatical settlement broker shall maintain at least one designated individual who is individually licensed as a viatical settlement broker to be responsible for the licensee's compliance with this chapter.

...Irrespective of the manner in which the viatical settlement broker is compensated, a viatical settlement broker is deemed to represent only the viator and owes a fiduciary duty to the viator to act according to the viator's instructions and in the best interest of the viator.

...(A) A person shall not use a viatical settlement contract form or provide a disclosure statement form to a viator in this state unless the viatical settlement contract form or the disclosure statement form is filed with and approved by the superintendent of insurance. The superintendent shall disapprove a viatical settlement contract form or a disclosure statement form if, in the superintendent's opinion, the viatica...

...(A)(1) With each application for a viatical settlement, a viatical settlement provider or viatical settlement broker shall disclose at least the following to a viator no later than the time all parties sign the application for the viatical settlement contract: (a) That there are possible alternatives to viatical settlement contracts, including any accelerated death benefits offered under the viator's policy; ...

... (A) A viatical settlement provider entering into a viatical settlement contract shall first obtain all of the following: (1) If the viator is the insured, a written statement from an attending physician, certified nurse-midwife, clinical nurse specialist, or certified nurse practitioner that the viator is of sound mind and under no constraint or undue influence to enter into a viatical settlement contract. As use...

...Each viatical settlement contract entered into in this state shall provide the viator with an unconditional right to rescind the contract for at least fifteen calendar days after the receipt of the viatical settlement proceeds. If the insured dies during the rescission period, the viatical settlement contract is deemed to have been rescinded, subject to repayment of all viatical settlement proceeds to the viatical se...

...(A) The viatical settlement provider shall instruct the viator to send the executed documents required to effect the change in ownership, assignment, or change in beneficiary directly to the escrow agent. Within three business days after the date the escrow agent receives the documents, or from the date the viatical settlement provider receives the documents if the viator erroneously provides the documents di...

...After a viatical settlement has occurred, contact with the insured for the purpose of determining the health status of the insured shall be made only by the viatical settlement provider, or the authorized representative of the viatical settlement provider. The viatical settlement provider, or authorized representative shall not contact the insured for the purpose of determining the insured's health s...

...(A)(1) A licensee under this chapter shall, for five years, retain copies of all of the following: (a) All proposed, offered, or executed contracts, purchase agreements, underwriting documents, policy forms, and applications from the date of the proposal, offer, or execution of the contract or purchase agreement, whichever is later; (b) All checks, drafts, or other evidence and documentation related to the paymen...

...(A) Each licensee under this chapter shall file with the superintendent of insurance, on or before the first day of March of each year, an annual statement verified under oath by two officers in the form prescribed by the superintendent. The annual statement for a viatical settlement provider shall include the following information about the viatical settlement provider's transactions: (1) Aggregate ...

...Except as otherwise permitted or required by law, a viatical settlement provider, viatical settlement broker, insurance company, insurance agent, insurance broker, information bureau, rating agency or company, or any other person with actual knowledge of a viator or an insured's identity, shall not disclose that identity, including the viator or insured's name and individual identification data, or the viator ...

...(A)(1) The superintendent of insurance may conduct an examination under this chapter of a licensee as often as the superintendent in the superintendent's sole discretion considers appropriate. The superintendent shall consider all of the following to determine the nature, scope, and frequency of examinations: (a) Consumer complaints; (b) The results of financial statement analyses and ratios; (c) Any changes in...

... (A) The superintendent of insurance may, except as provided in division (B) of this section, refuse to issue or may suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew the license of a viatical settlement provider or viatical settlement broker, if the superintendent finds that any of the following apply: (1) There was a material misrepresentation in the application for the license. (2) The applicant or licensee or any officer, ...

... (A)(1) It is a violation of this chapter for any person to enter into a viatical settlement contract prior to the application for or issuance of a policy that is the subject of the viatical settlement contract. (2) It is a violation of this chapter for any person to issue, solicit, market, or otherwise promote the purchase of a policy for the purpose of or with an emphasis on selling the policy. (B) It is a vio...

... (A) The general assembly hereby declares that the purpose of this section is to provide prospective viators with clear and unambiguous statements in the advertisement of viatical settlements and to assure the clear, truthful, and adequate disclosure of the benefits, risks, limitations, and exclusions of any viatical settlement contract. This purpose is intended to be accomplished by the establishment of guidelines a...

... (A) No person shall commit a fraudulent viatical settlement act. (B) All of the following acts are fraudulent viatical settlement acts when committed by any person who, knowingly and with intent to defraud and for the purpose of depriving another of property or for pecuniary gain, commits, or permits any of its employees or its agents to commit them: (1) Presenting, causing to be presented, or preparing with kno...

...Any contract, agreement, arrangement, or transaction including, but not limited to, any financing agreement or arrangement identified in section 1321.72 of the Revised Code entered into for the furtherance or aid of a stranger-originated life insurance act, practice, arrangement, or agreement is void and unenforceable.

...Trusts or other persons that are created to give the appearance of insurable interest and are used to initiate one or more policies for investors violate insurable interest laws and the prohibition against wagering on life.

...(A)(1) No person shall knowingly or intentionally interfere with the enforcement of the provisions of this chapter or investigations of suspected or actual violations of this chapter. (2) No person in the business of viatical settlements shall knowingly or intentionally permit any person convicted of a felony involving dishonesty or breach of trust to participate in the business of viatical settlements. (...

...(A) In addition to the penalties and other enforcement provisions contained in this chapter, if any person violates any provision of this chapter or any rule or regulation implementing any provision of this chapter, the superintendent of insurance may seek an injunction in a court of competent jurisdiction and may apply for any temporary or permanent order that the superintendent determines is necessary to restrain t...

...The superintendent of insurance may adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code for purposes of implementing this chapter, including, but not limited to, rules that do the following: (A) Govern the relationship and responsibilities of insurers, viatical settlement providers, and viatical settlement brokers during the viatication of a policy. (B) Establish standards for evaluating the reasona...

...(A) No person shall fail to comply with this chapter. (B) Whoever violates division (A) of this section is deemed to have engaged in an unfair and deceptive act or practice in the business of insurance under sections 3901.19 to 3901.26 of the Revised Code.

...(A) Whoever violates section 3916.02 of the Revised Code is guilty of a felony of the third degree. (B) Whoever violates division (A) of section 3916.171 of the Revised Code is guilty of a violation of section 2913.02 of the Revised Code.

... As used in sections 3917.01 to 3917.06 of the Revised Code, the following forms of life insurance are group life insurance: (A) A life insurance policy issued to an employer, or to the trustees of a fund established by an employer, which employer or trustees shall be deemed the policyholder, to insure employees of the employer for the benefit of persons other than the employer, subject to all of the following requ...

...(A) As used in this section: (1) "Direct response solicitation" means a solicitation through a sponsoring or endorsing entity through the mail, telephone, or other mass communication media. (2) "Sponsoring or endorsing entity" means an organization that has arranged for the offering of a program of insurance in a manner that communicates that eligibility for participation in the program is dependent upon affiliatio...

...Any life insurance policy issued pursuant to section 3917.01 of the Revised Code, except for a policy issued pursuant to division (B) of section 3917.01 of the Revised Code, may be extended to insure an employee's dependents or member's dependents, as defined by the policy, or any class or classes of dependents, subject to the following: (A) The premium for the insurance shall be paid either from the funds contribut...

...(A)(1) If any employee of a political subdivision or district of this state, or of an institution supported in whole or in part by public funds, authorizes in writing the proper officer of the political subdivision, district, or institution, of which the individual is an employee to deduct from the employee's salary or wages the premium or portion of the premium agreed to be paid by the employee to an insurer a...

...No policy of group insurance, nor the proceeds thereof, when paid to any employee thereunder, is liable to attachment, garnishment, or other process, or to be seized, taken, appropriated, or applied by any legal or equitable process or operation of law, to pay any liability of such employee, his beneficiary, or any other person who may have a right thereunder, either before or after payment.

... No policy of group life insurance shall be delivered in this state until a copy of its form has been filed with the superintendent of insurance pursuant to division (A) of section 3915.14 of the Revised Code. In addition, except as provided in division (M) of this section, no policy of group life insurance shall be delivered in this state unless it contains in substance the following provisions or other provisions,...

...No provision in section 3917.06 of the Revised Code shall prohibit a person whose life is insured under any such policy of group life insurance from making an assignment of all or any part of the person's incidents of ownership under such policy including specifically, but not by way of limitation, any right to designate a beneficiary or beneficiaries thereunder and any right to have an individual policy issued to t...

...All consumer credit insurance issued or sold in connection with loans or other credit transactions for personal, family, or household purposes is subject to sections 3918.01 to 3918.13 of the Revised Code, except for all of the following: (A) Insurance written in connection with a credit transaction that is secured by a first mortgage or deed of trust and is made to finance the purchase of real property, or the cons...

...As used in sections 3918.01 to 3918.13 of the Revised Code: (A) "Consumer credit insurance" means credit life insurance and credit accident and health insurance. (B) "Credit life insurance" means insurance on the life of a debtor pursuant to or in connection with a specific loan or other credit transaction. (C) "Credit accident and health insurance" means insurance on a debtor to provide indemnity for payments bec...

...Credit life insurance and credit accident and health insurance shall be issued only in the following forms: (A) Individual policies of life insurance issued to debtors on the term plan; (B) Individual policies of accident and health insurance issued to debtors on a term plan including individual policies issued on a franchise plan, as defined in section 3923.11 of the Revised Code, or disability benefit provisions ...

...(A) The amount of credit life insurance shall not exceed the initial indebtedness. Where an indebtedness repayable in substantially equal installments is secured by an individual policy of credit life insurance the amount of insurance shall at no time exceed the scheduled amount of indebtedness and, where secured by a group policy of credit life insurance, shall at no time exceed the amount of unpaid indebtedness. ...

...The term of any credit life insurance or credit accident and health insurance shall, subject to acceptance by the insurer, commence on the date when the debtor becomes obligated to the creditor, or the date from which interest or finance charges accrue if later, except that, where a group policy provides coverage with respect to existing obligations, the insurance on a debtor with respect to such indebtedness shall c...

...(A) All credit life insurance and credit accident and health insurance sold shall be evidenced by an individual policy, or in the case of group insurance by a certificate of insurance, which individual policy or group certificate of insurance shall be delivered to the debtor. (B) Each individual policy or group certificate of credit life insurance, or credit accident and health insurance, or both shall, in addition ...

...(A) All policies, certificates of insurance, notices of proposed insurance, applications for insurance, endorsements and riders providing coverage on residents of Ohio shall be filed with the superintendent of insurance. (B) The superintendent shall within thirty days after the filing of any such policies, certificates of insurance, notices of proposed insurance, applications for insurance, endorsements, and riders,...

...(A) Each insurer issuing credit life insurance or credit accident and health insurance shall file with the superintendent of insurance its schedules of premium rates for use in connection with such insurance. Any insurer may revise such schedules from time to time, and shall file such revised schedules with the superintendent. No insurer shall issue any credit life insurance policy for which the premium rate exceeds ...

...All policies of credit life insurance and credit accident and health insurance shall be delivered or issued for delivery in this state only by an insurer authorized to do an insurance business in this state.

...(A) All claims shall be promptly reported to the insurer or its designated claim representative, and the insurer shall maintain adequate claim files. All claims shall be settled as soon as possible and in accordance with the terms of the insurance contract. (B) All claims shall be paid either by draft drawn upon the insurer or by check of the insurer to the order of the claimant to whom payment of the claim is due p...

...When credit life insurance or credit accident and health insurance is required as additional security for an indebtedness, the debtor shall, upon request to the creditor, have the option of furnishing the required amount of insurance through existing policies of insurance owned or controlled by him or of procuring and furnishing the required coverage through any insurer authorized to transact an insurance business wi...

...The superintendent may, in accordance with section 119.03 of the Revised Code, adopt such rules and regulations as he deems appropriate, for the enforcement of sections 3918.01 to 3918.11 of the Revised Code. Whenever the superintendent finds that there has been a violation of sections 3918.01 to 3918.13 of the Revised Code or any rules or regulations adopted pursuant thereto, and after written notice thereof and he...

...Any party to the proceeding affected by an order of the superintendent shall be entitled to judicial review by following the procedure set forth in section 119.12 of the Revised Code.

...Whoever violates sections 3918.01 to 3918.13, inclusive, of the Revised Code, shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than one thousand dollars. The penalty provided in this section is in addition to any other penalty provided by law.

... A company or association may be organized to transact the business of life or accident or life and accident insurance on the assessment plan, for the purpose of mutual protection and relief of its members, and for the payment of stipulated sums of money to the families, heirs, executors, administrators, or assigns of the deceased members of such company or association, as the member may direct, in the manner provide...

...Every association transacting business under sections 3919.02 to 3919.10, inclusive, of the Revised Code, shall hold and maintain, upon every contract of insurance issued on and after January 1, 1926, assets in excess of other liabilities, to provide for reserves of not less than the minimum reserves prescribed in such sections. The basis for minimum reserves under such sections is the American experience table of m...