2023 Tennessee Code › Title 56 - INSURANCE (§§ 56-1-101 — 56-61-125) › Chapter 7 - POLICIES AND POLICYHOLDERS 33|373 (§§ 56-7-NEW — 56-7-3722) › Part 23 - MANDATED INSURER OR PLAN COVERAGE (§§ 56-7-NEW — 56-7-2369) › Section 56-7-2311 - Life insurance policy forms

(a)
Filing and Approval.
No policy of life insurance shall be delivered or issued for delivery in this state, nor shall any endorsement, rider, or application that becomes a part of the policy be used in connection with the policy until a copy of the form has been filed with the commissioner; nor shall any policy, endorsement, rider, or application be so used until the expiration of thirty (30) days after the form has been filed, unless the commissioner sooner gives written approval. The commissioner shall notify, in writing, the insurer that has filed the form if it does not comply with this chapter, specifying the reasons for the opinion. It shall thereafter be unlawful for the insurer to issue the form in this state. In the notice, the commissioner shall state that a hearing will be granted within twenty (20) days upon written request of the insurer.
(b)
Withdrawal of Approval - Notice of Hearings.
The commissioner may, at any time after a hearing, of which not less than twenty (20) days' written notice has been given to the insurer, withdraw approval of the form if the form contains a provision for benefits that is misleading or deceptive or that would encourage misrepresentation of the policy. It is unlawful for the insurer to issue the form or use it in connection with any policy after the effective date of the withdrawal of approval. A notice of any hearing called under this section shall specify the matters to be considered at the hearing, and any decision affirming disapproval or directing withdrawal of approval under this section shall be in writing and shall specify the reasons for the decision.
(c)
Disapproval - Substantial Compliance.
The commissioner shall not disapprove or withdraw approval of any policy on the ground that its provisions do not comply with this chapter, if it is shown that the rights of the insured or the beneficiary under the policy as a whole are not less favorable than the rights provided by this chapter.
(d)
Review - Certiorari.
Any order or decision of the commissioner under this section shall be subject to review in the manner provided by title 27, chapter 9, pertaining to the statutory writ of certiorari.
(e)
Policy Deliverable in Another State.
If any policy is issued by an insurer domiciled in this state for delivery to a person residing in another state, and if the official having responsibility for the administration of the insurance laws of the other state has advised the commissioner that the policy is not subject to approval or disapproval by the official, the commissioner may by ruling require that the policy meet the standards set forth in this chapter.
(f)
Application to Annuity Contracts and Life Policies.
This section applies to individual annuity contracts, but not to group annuity contracts, to individual and group life insurance policies and to industrial life insurance policies.
(g)
Filing Procedure.
The commissioner may make reasonable rules and regulations concerning the procedure for the filing or submission of policies subject to this section as are necessary, proper or advisable to the administration of this section.
Acts 1907, ch. 457, § 4; Shan., § 3348a11; Code 1932, § 6182; Acts 1971, ch. 296, § 1; 1976, ch. 417, § 8; T.C.A. (orig. ed.), § 56-1118; Acts 1992, ch. 984, § 1; T.C.A., §
56-7-307
.