Source: https://gfms.org/law/connecticut
Timestamp: 2019-04-26 11:49:10+00:00

Document:
§ 38a-836. - Short title: Connecticut Insurance Guaranty Association Act.
§ 38a-837. - Application of chapter.
§ 38a-839. - Connecticut Insurance Guaranty Association created. Membership. Function. Accounts.
§ 38a-840. - Board of directors. Selection. Reimbursement for expenses.
§ 38a-841. - Obligations and rights of association. Limitations. Assessments. Investigation of claims. Right to intervene in court proceedings.
§ 38a-842. - Plan of operation.
§ 38a-843. - Insolvent insurers. Penalty. Petition to show cause.
§ 38a-844. - Assignment of rights under policy. Receiver or liquidator bound by settlements. Preservation of rights of association. Right of recovery.
§ 38a-845. - Exhaustion of rights under policy prior to claim against association. Claims recoverable from more than one association. Persons required to exhaust rights under governmental insurance or guaranty program.
§ 38a-846. - Detection and prevention of insurer insolvencies.
§ 38a-847. - Association subject to examination and regulation by commissioner. Annual financial report.
§ 38a-848. - Exemption from fees and taxes. Exception.
§ 38a-849. - Rates and premiums to include recoupment of assessments.
§ 38a-850. - No liability for action taken in performance of powers and duties. No liability for failure to act.
§ 38a-851. - Association rights in proceedings to which insolvent insurer is party. Access to insolvent insurer`s records.
§ 38a-852. - Prohibited unfair trade practice.
§ 38a-854 to 38a-857 - Reserved.
Sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive, shall be known and may be cited as the "Connecticut Insurance Guaranty Association Act."
10) Flood insurance pursuant to the federal Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973, as amended, 42 USC. § 4001, et seq.
(5) (A) "Covered claim" means an unpaid claim, including, but not limited to, one for unearned premiums, that arises out of and is within the coverage and subject to the applicable limits of an insurance policy to which sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive, apply, if such insurer becomes an insolvent insurer or such claim was assumed as a direct obligation by an insurer that becomes an insolvent insurer, where such obligation was assumed through a merger or an acquisition, pursuant to an acquisition of assets and assumption of liabilities or pursuant to an assumption reinsurance transaction, and (i) the claimant or insured is a resident of this state at the time of the insured event, or (ii) the claim is a first party claim for damage to property with a permanent location in this state. �For the purposes of this subparagraph, the residence of a claimant or an insured that is not an individual shall be the state in which such claimant''s or insured''s principal place of business is located at the time of the insured event.
11) "United States" has the meaning assigned to it by section 38a-1.
3) an account for all other insurance to which sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive, apply.
A) The board of directors of said association shall consist of not less than five nor more than nine persons serving terms as established in the plan of operation under section 38a-842. The members of the board of directors shall be selected by member insurers subject to the approval of the commissioner. Vacancies on the board shall be filled for the remaining period of the term by a majority vote of the remaining members, subject to the approval of the commissioner. If no members are selected within sixty days after October 1, 1971, the commissioner may appoint the initial members of the board of directors.
B) In approving selections to said board, the commissioner shall consider among other things whether all member insurers are fairly represented.
C) Members of said board shall receive no compensation as such but shall be reimbursed from the assets of said association for actual and necessary expenses incurred by them in carrying out their official duties as members of the board of directors.
(7) Reimburse each such servicing facility for obligations of said association paid by such facility and for expenses incurred by such facility while handling claims on behalf of said association and shall pay such other expenses of said association as are authorized by sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive.
7) refund to the member insurers in proportion to the contribution of each such member insurer to that account, that amount by which the assets of the account exceed the liabilities, if, at the end of any calendar year, the board of directors finds that the assets of said association in any account exceed the liabilities of that account as estimated by the board of directors for the coming year.
C) 1) Each insurer paying an assessment under sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive, may offset one hundred per cent of the amount of such assessment against its premium tax liability to this state under chapter 207. Such offset shall be taken over a period of the five successive tax years following the year of payment of the assessment, at the rate of twenty per cent per year of the assessment paid to the association. Each insurer to which has been refunded by the association, pursuant to subsection (B) of this section, all or a portion of an assessment previously paid to the association by the insurer shall be required to pay to the Department of Revenue Services an amount equal to the total amount that has been claimed as an offset against the premiums tax liability on the premiums tax return or returns, as the case may be, filed by such insurer and that is attributable to such refunded assessment, provided the amount required to be paid to said department shall not exceed the amount of the refunded assessment. If the amount of the refunded assessment exceeds the total amount that has been claimed as an offset against the premiums tax liability on the premiums tax return or returns filed by such insurer and that is attributable to such refunded assessment, such excess may not be claimed as an offset against the premiums tax liability on a premiums tax return or returns filed by such insurer or, if the offset has been transferred to another person pursuant to subdivision (2) of this subsection, by such other person. For purposes of this subsection, if the offset has been transferred to another person pursuant to subdivision (2) of this subsection, the total amount that has been claimed as an offset against the premiums tax liability on the premiums tax return or returns filed by such insurer includes the total amount that has been claimed as an offset against the premiums tax liability on the premiums tax return or returns filed by such other person. The association shall promptly notify the Commissioner of Revenue Services of the name and address of the insurers to which such refunds have been made, the amount of such refunds and the date on which such refunds were mailed to such insurer. If the amount that an insurer is required to pay to the Department of Revenue Services has not been so paid on or before the forty-fifth day after the date of mailing of such refunds, the insurer shall be liable for interest on such amount at the rate of one per cent per month or fraction thereof from such forty-fifth day to the date of payment.
2) An insurer, in this subparagraph called "the transferor", may transfer any offset provided under subdivision (1) of this subsection to an affiliate, as defined in section 38a-1, of the transferor. Any such transfer of the offset by the transferor and any subsequent transfer or transfers of the same offset shall not affect the obligation of the transferor to pay to the Department of Revenue Services any sums which are acquired by refund from the association pursuant to subsection (B) of this section and which are required to be paid to the Department of Revenue Services pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection. Such offset may be taken by any transferee only against the transferee''s premium tax liability to this state under chapter 207. The Commissioner of Revenue Services shall not allow such offset to a transferee against its premium tax liability unless the transferor, the affiliate to which the offset was originally transferred, each subsequent transferor and each subsequent transferee have filed such information as may be required on forms provided by said commissioner with respect to any such transfer or transfers on or before the due date of the premium tax return on which such offset would have been taken by the transferor if no transfer had been made by the transferor.
a) 1) Said association shall submit to the commissioner a plan of operation and any amendments thereto necessary or suitable to assure the fair, reasonable, and equitable administration of said association. The plan of operation and any amendments thereto shall become effective upon approval in writing by the commissioner.
2) If said association fails to submit a suitable plan of operation within ninety days following October 1, 1971, or if at any time thereafter said association fails to submit suitable amendments to the plan, the commissioner shall, after notice and hearing, adopt and promulgate such reasonable regulations as are necessary or advisable to effectuate the provisions of sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive. Such regulations shall continue in force until modified by the commissioner or superseded by a plan submitted by said association and approved by the commissioner.
9) contain such additional provisions as may be necessary or proper for the execution of the powers and duties of said association under sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive.
D) The plan of operation may delegate any or all powers and duties of said association, except those under subdivision (3) of subsection (A) of section 38a-841 and subdivision (2) of subsection (b) of section 38a-841, to a corporation, association, or other organization which performs or will perform functions similar to those of said association, or its equivalent having a like function to that of said association, in two or more states. Such a corporation, association or organization shall be reimbursed by said association as a servicing facility would be reimbursed and shall be paid by said association for its performance of any other functions of said association. Any delegation under this subsection shall take effect only with the approval of both the board of directors and the commissioner, and may be made only to a corporation, association, or organization which extends protection not substantially less favorable and effective than that provided by sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive.
(a) The commissioner shall: (1) Notify said association of the existence of an insolvent insurer, and notify the chairman of the Workers' Compensation Commission and the State Treasurer of the existence of an insolvent workers' compensation insurer, not later than three days after the commissioner receives notice of any such insolvency; (2) upon request of the board of directors, provide said association with a statement of the net direct written premiums of each member insurer.
(b) The commissioner may: (1) Require that said association notify those persons insured by the insolvent insurer, and any other interested parties, of the entry of a final order of liquidation with a finding of insolvency and of their rights under sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive. Such notification shall be by mail sent to their last known address, where available, provided if sufficient information for such notification by mail is not available, notice by publication in a newspaper of general circulation shall be sufficient to satisfy the requirements of this subsection; (2) suspend or revoke, after notice and hearing, the certificate of authority to transact insurance in this state of any member insurer that fails to pay an assessment when due or which fails to comply with said plan of operation. In lieu of such suspension or revocation, the commissioner may levy a fine on any member insurer that fails to pay an assessment when due, provided no such fine shall exceed five per cent of the unpaid assessment per month, and provided no fine shall be less than five hundred dollars per month; (3) revoke the designation of any servicing facility if the commissioner finds claims are being handled unsatisfactorily.
c) Any person aggrieved by any final action or order of the commissioner under sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive, may, not later than thirty days from the date of such action or order, petition the superior court for the judicial district of Hartford to require the commissioner to show cause why said action or order should not be reversed or eliminated, and, if said court finds that the action or order of the commissioner was arbitrary and unjustified it shall take such action in the premises as may seem equitable. The pendency of any such petitions to show cause shall act as a stay of execution of any such order. Petitions under this section shall be privileged in respect of trial assignment.
A) Any person recovering any moneys under sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive, shall be deemed to have assigned his rights under the policy to said association to the extent of his recovery from said association. Every insured or claimant seeking the protection of said sections shall cooperate with said association to the same extent as such person would have been required to cooperate with the insolvent insurer. Said association shall have no cause of action against any insured of the insolvent insurer for any sums it has paid out to such insured except such causes of action as the insolvent insurer would have had if such sums had been paid by the insolvent insurer. In the case of an insolvent insurer operating on a plan with assessment liability, payments of claims of said association shall not operate to reduce the liability of insured's to the receiver, liquidator, or statutory successor for unpaid assessments.
B) The receiver, liquidator, or statutory successor of an insolvent insurer shall be bound by determinations of covered claim eligibility under sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive, and by settlements of claims made by said association or any similar organization having a like function to that of said association in another state. The court having jurisdiction shall grant such claims priority equal to that to which the claimant would have been entitled in the absence of said sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive, against the assets of the insolvent insurer. The expenses of said association or any similar organization having a like function to that of said association in handling claims shall be accorded the same priority as the receiver's or liquidator's expenses.
C) Said association shall periodically file with the receiver or Liquidator of the insolvent insurer statements of the covered claims paid by said association, the expenses paid for the processing of covered claims paid or contested and estimates of anticipated claims on said association, and expenses of processing such claims which shall preserve the rights of said association against the assets of the insolvent insurer.
D) 1) Except as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection, the association shall have the right to recover from the following persons the amount of any covered claim paid on behalf of such person pursuant to sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive: (A) Any person who is an affiliate of the insolvent insurer and whose liability obligations to other persons are satisfied in whole or in part by payments made under this chapter; and (B) any insured whose net worth on December thirty-first of the year next preceding the date the insurer becomes an insolvent insurer exceeds fifty million dollars and whose liability obligations to other persons are satisfied in whole or in part by payments made under said sections. For purposes of this subdivision, "insured" does not include a municipality, as defined in section 7-148, or the Second Injury Fund, established in section 31-354.
2) The association shall have no right to recover pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection from any nonprofit corporation organized to deliver health services and social services to meet the needs of the elderly, that is incorporated in this state and qualified as a Section 501(c)(3) organization under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or any subsequent corresponding internal revenue code of the United States, as amended from time to time, for any amount of covered claims paid on behalf of such corporation on or after December 1, 2001, provided the insolvent insurer was declared insolvent prior to May 27, 2008. Any amounts recovered by the association prior to May 27, 2008 from any such nonprofit corporation or affiliate of such nonprofit corporation shall not be required to be reimbursed to such nonprofit corporation or affiliate of such nonprofit corporation.
A) Any person having a claim against an insurer under any provision in an insurance policy, other than a policy of an insolvent insurer, which is also a covered claim under sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive, shall exhaust first his rights under such policy. Any amount payable on a covered claim under said sections shall be reduced by the amount recoverable under the claimant's insurance policy or chapter 568.
C) Any person having a claim under any governmental insurance or guaranty program which such claim is also a covered claim shall be required to first exhaust his rights under such program. Any amount payable on a covered claim under sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive, shall be reduced by any amount recoverable under such program.
1) The board of directors, upon majority vote, shall notify the commissioner of any information which it may have indicating any member insurer may be insolvent or in a financial condition hazardous to its policyholders or the public.
2) The board of directors may, upon majority vote, request that the commissioner order an examination of any member insurer which the board in good faith believes may be in a financial condition hazardous to its policyholders or the public. Within thirty days of the receipt of such request, the commissioner shall begin such examination. The examination may be conducted as a National Association of Insurance Commissioners examination or may be conducted by the commissioner or by such persons as the commissioner may designate. The cost of such examination shall be paid by said association. In no event shall such examination report be released to the board of directors prior to its release to the public, provided this shall not preclude the commissioner from complying with subdivision (3) of this section. The commissioner shall notify the board of directors when the examination is completed. The request for an examination shall be kept on file by the commissioner but it shall not be open to public inspection prior to the release of the examination report to the public.
3) The commissioner shall report to the board of directors when he has reasonable cause to believe that any member insurer examined or being examined at the request of the board of directors may be insolvent or in a financial condition hazardous to its policyholders or the public.
4) The board of directors may, upon majority vote, make reports and recommendations to the commissioner and the chief insurance regulatory official in any jurisdiction upon any matter germane to the solvency, liquidation, rehabilitation or conservation of any member insurer. Such reports and recommendations shall not be considered public documents.
5) The board of directors may, upon majority vote, make recommendations to the commissioner and any other public official in any jurisdiction for the detection and prevention of insurer insolvencies.
6) At the request of the commissioner, the board of directors shall, at the conclusion of any insurer insolvency in which said association was obligated to pay any covered claim, prepare a report on the history and causes of such insolvency, based on the information available to said association, and submit such report to the commissioner.
Said association shall be subject to examination and regulation by the commissioner. The board of directors shall submit, not later than March thirtieth of each year, a financial report for the preceding calendar year in a form approved by the commissioner.
Said association shall be exempt from payment of all fees and all taxes levied by the state or any of its subdivisions provided it shall not be exempt from the payment of real or personal property taxes.
a) All proceedings in which an insolvent insurer is a party or is obligated to defend an insured as a party in any court in this state shall be stayed for up to six months and for such additional time thereafter as may be determined by the court from the date of declaration of insolvency or from the time an ancillary proceeding is instituted in the state, whichever is later, to permit proper defense by said association of all pending causes of action in the case. Whenever any covered claims arise from a judgment under any decision, verdict or finding based on the default of an insolvent insurer or based on such insolvent insurer's failure to defend an insured, said association, either on its own behalf or on behalf of such insured, may apply to have such judgment, order, decision, verdict or finding set aside by the same court or administrator that made such judgment, order, decision, verdict or finding and said association may defend against any such claim on the merits of the case.
b) The liquidator, receiver or statutory successor of an insolvent insurer covered by sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive, shall permit access by the board or its authorized representative to such insolvent insurer's records which the board determines are necessary for the board to carry out its functions under said sections 38a-836 to 38a853, inclusive, with regard to covered claims. The liquidator, receiver or statutory successor shall provide the board or its representative with copies of such records upon the request of the board.
It shall be a prohibited unfair trade practice and a violation of section 38a-815 for any person to make use in any manner of the protection afforded by sections 38a-836 to 38a853, inclusive, in the solicitation, negotiation, procurement or effectuation of insurance provided, this section shall not apply to the distribution of any publication approved by the commissioner and describing the general purposes and current limitations of sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive. Violations of this section shall be subject to the provisions of section 38a-817.
The commissioner may promulgate such reasonable regulations as he deems necessary to carry out the intent of sections 38a-836 to 38a-853, inclusive. Such regulations may include definitions of the kinds of insurance specified in section 38a-837.

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 § 4001