Bill Text: CA AB2347 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

---

Bill Title: Insurance policies.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2014-07-21 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 166, Statutes of 2014. [AB2347 Detail]

Download: California-2013-AB2347-Amended.html

---

BILL NUMBER: AB 2347	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  JUNE 3, 2014
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 30, 2014

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Gonzalez

                        FEBRUARY 21, 2014

   An act to amend Sections 786, 10127.9, 10127.10, 10127.13, and
10509.6 of the Insurance Code, relating to insurance.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 2347, as amended, Gonzalez. Insurance policies.
   (1) Existing law requires that a disability insurance policy or
life insurance policy and certificate offered for sale to individuals
65 years of age or older in California provide a 30-day examination
period during which the applicant may return the contract and receive
a refund of all premiums and any membership fee paid. This
information is required to be disclosed on the cover sheet of the
policy or certificate, in no less than 10-point uppercase type.
Existing law allows the applicant to return the policy or certificate
by regular mail.
   This bill would specify that those requirements apply to
individual and group disability and group life insurance policies and
certificates. The bill would require that the notice be in 12-point
bold type on the front of the policy jacket or on the cover sheet of
the policy or certificate. The bill would allow the policyholder or
certificate holder to return the policy or certificate by mail or
other delivery method. The bill would also require an insurer, its
agent, group master policyowner, or association that collects more
than one month's premium from an individual who is 60 years of age or
older on the date he or she purchased the coverage to provide that
person a prorated refund of the premium if the person delivers a
cancellation request during the first 30 days of the policy period.
   (2) Existing law requires a policy of individual life insurance
that is initially delivered or issued for delivery in the state on
and after January 1, 1990, to have printed thereon or attached
thereto a specified notice of cancellation rights.
   This bill would require that disclosure to be printed on the front
of the policy jacket or on the cover page of every individual life
insurance policy and individual annuity contract.
   (3) Existing law requires specified disclosures, in all capital
letters, pertaining to cancellation and refunds, to the consumers of
variable individual life insurance policies and variable annuity
contracts, and of consumers of individual life insurance policies
other than variable contracts and modified guaranteed contracts.
Existing law requires an insurer to include in those disclosures that
the applicant may be charged a surrender charge or penalty if he or
she cancels the policy after the 30-day period, unless the policy
does not contain surrender charges or penalties.
   This bill would additionally require that those disclosures be
included with a modified guaranteed annuity contract, and would
instead require that the disclosure be made in lowercase type. This
bill would also require an insurer that calls a surrender charge a
"withdrawal penalty" to disclose that fact, as specified.
   (4) Existing law requires all individual life insurance policies
and individual annuity contracts for senior citizens that contain a
surrender charge period to either disclose the surrender period and
all associated penalties in 12-point bold print on the cover sheet of
the policy or disclose the location of the surrender information in
bold 12-point print on the cover page of the policy or printed on a
sticker that is affixed to the cover page or to the policy jacket.
   This bill would instead require those policies and contracts 
that contain a charge upon surrender, partial surrender, excess
withdrawal, or penalties upon surrender  to  disclose
  contain a notice disclosing  the location of the
 surrender  charge,  surrender 
 the  charge  time  period,  and surrender
  the  charge information ,  and  any
 associated penalty information in bold 12-point print on the
front of the policy jacket or on the single cover page of the policy
 , which would also be required to contain any statutorily
required notice regarding a right to examine  .  This
bill would also require that notice and the statutorily required
right to examine notice to appear on the same page if both notices
are on the cover page. 
   The bill would also make conforming changes.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 786 of the Insurance Code is amended to read:
   786.  All individual and group disability insurance policies and
certificates, and all group life insurance policies and certificates
offered for sale to individuals age 65 or older in California shall
provide an examination period of 30 days after the receipt of the
policy or certificate for purposes of review of the contract. If the
policyholder or certificate holder chooses to cancel the policy or
certificate and returns the policy or certificate for cancellation,
by mail or other delivery method, within the 30-day examination
period, the return shall void the policy or certificate from the
beginning, and the parties shall be in the same position as if a
policy or certificate had not been issued. All premiums paid and any
policy or membership fee paid shall be fully refunded to the
policyholder or certificate holder by the insurer or entity in a
timely manner.
   (a) For the purposes of this section, a timely manner is no later
than 30 days after the insurer or entity issuing the policy or
certificate receives the returned policy or certificate.
   (b) If the insurer or entity issuing the policy or certificate
fails to refund all of the premiums and any policy or membership fee
paid, in a timely manner, the policyholder or certificate holder
shall receive interest on the paid premium and policy or membership
fee at the legal rate of interest on judgments as provided in Section
685.010 of the Code of Civil Procedure. The interest shall be paid
from the date the insurer or entity received the returned policy or
certificate.
   (c) Each policy or certificate shall have a notice prominently
printed in no less than 12-point bold print, on the front of the
policy jacket or on the cover page of the policy or certificate and
the outline of coverage, stating that the policyholder or certificate
holder, as applicable, has the right to return the policy or
certificate, by mail or other delivery method, within 30 days after
its receipt, and to have the full premium and any policy or
membership fee paid refunded.
   (d) If, at the time of application or at the time of delivery of a
group term life insurance policy or certificate, an insurer, its
agent, group master policyowner, or association collects more than
one month's premium from an individual who is 60 years of age or
older on the date he or she purchased coverage, the insurer shall
provide the individual with a prorated refund of the premium if the
individual delivers a cancellation request to the insurer during the
first 30 days of the policy period.
  SEC. 2.  Section 10127.9 of the Insurance Code is amended to read:
   10127.9.  (a) (1) Every individual life insurance policy and every
individual annuity contract that is initially delivered or issued
for delivery in this state on and after January 1, 1990, shall have
printed on the front of the policy jacket or on the cover page a
notice stating that, after receipt of the policy by the owner, the
policy may be returned by the owner for cancellation by mail or other
delivery method to the insurer or to the agent through whom it was
purchased. The period of time set forth by the insurer for return of
the policy by the owner shall be clearly stated and this period shall
be not less than 10 days nor more than 30 days.
   (2) The owner may return the policy to the insurer by mail or
other delivery method at any time during the period specified in the
notice. In the case of individual nonvariable life insurance policies
and individual nonvariable annuity contracts, including modified
guaranteed contracts, by delivering or mailing the policy pursuant to
this section during the cancellation period, the owner shall void
the policy from the beginning, and the parties shall be in the same
position as if no policy had been issued. All premiums paid and any
policy fee paid for the policy shall be refunded by the insurer to
the owner within 30 days from the date that the insurer is notified
that the owner has canceled the policy. In the case of individual
variable annuity contracts and individual variable life insurance
policies, return of the policy during the cancellation period shall
entitle the owner to a refund of the account value and any policy fee
paid for the policy. The account value and policy fee shall be
refunded by the insurer to the owner within 30 days from the date
that the insurer is notified that the owner has canceled the policy.
   (b) This section applies to all individual policies issued or
delivered in this state on or after January 1, 1990, but does not
apply to any policy subject to Section 10127.7. All policies subject
to this section which are in effect on January 1, 1990, shall be
construed to be in compliance with this section, and any provision in
any policy which is in conflict with this section shall be of no
force or effect.
   (c) This section does not apply to individual life insurance
policies issued in connection with a credit transaction or issued
under a contractual policy-change or conversion privilege provision
contained in a policy.
   (d) General references to "policy" or "policies" in this section
refer to both life insurance policies and annuity contracts.
  SEC. 3.  Section 10127.10 of the Insurance Code is amended to read:

   10127.10.  (a) Every policy of individual life insurance and every
individual annuity contract that is initially delivered or issued
for delivery to a senior citizen in this state on and after July 1,
2004, shall have printed on the front of the policy jacket or on the
cover page a notice stating that, after receipt of the policy by the
owner, the policy may be returned by the owner for cancellation by
mail or other delivery method to the insurer or agent from whom it
was purchased. The period of time set forth by the insurer for return
of the policy by the owner shall be clearly stated in the notice and
this period shall be not less than 30 days. The owner may return the
policy to the insurer by mail or other delivery method at any time
during the period specified in the notice. During the 30-day
cancellation period, the premium for an individual variable life
insurance policy or an individual variable annuity contract may be
invested only in fixed-income investments and money-market funds,
unless the owner specifically directs that the premium be invested in
the mutual funds underlying the variable life insurance policy or
variable annuity contract. Return of the policy within the 30-day
cancellation period shall have one of the following effects:
   (1) In the case of individual variable life insurance policies and
individual variable annuity contracts for which the owner has not
directed that the premium be invested in the mutual funds underlying
the policy during the cancellation period, return of the policy
during the cancellation period shall have the effect of voiding the
policy from the beginning, and the parties shall be in the same
position as if no policy had been issued. All premiums paid and any
policy fee paid for the policy shall be refunded by the insurer to
the owner within 30 days from the date that the insurer is notified
that the owner has canceled the policy.
   (2) In the case of individual variable life insurance policies and
individual variable annuity contracts for which the owner has
directed that the premium be invested in the mutual funds underlying
the policy during the 30-day cancellation period, cancellation shall
entitle the owner to a refund of the account value and any policy fee
paid for the policy. The account value shall be refunded by the
insurer to the owner within 30 days from the date that the insurer is
notified that the owner has canceled the policy.
   (b) This section applies to all individual life insurance policies
and all individual annuity contracts issued or delivered to senior
citizens in this state on or after January 1, 2004. All policies
subject to this section which are in effect on January 1, 2003, shall
be construed to be in compliance with this section, and any
provision in any policy which is in conflict with this section shall
be of no force or effect.
   (c) Every individual nonvariable life insurance policy and every
individual nonvariable annuity contract, including modified
guaranteed annuity contracts, subject to this section, that is
delivered or issued for delivery in this state shall have the
following notice printed on the front of the policy jacket or on the
cover page in 12-point bold print with one inch of space on all
sides, using the exact language in quotation marks below, with
whichever one of the three bracketed product descriptions that
applies to the product on which the notice appears:
      "IMPORTANT!

   You have purchased a  life insurance policy or annuity contract
or modified guaranteed annuity contract]. Carefully review it for
limitations.
   This policy may be returned within 30 days from the date you
received it for a full refund by returning it to the insurance
company or agent who sold you this policy. After 30 days,
cancellation may result in a substantial penalty, known as a
surrender charge."

   The sentence "After 30 days, cancellation may result in a
substantial penalty, known as a surrender charge" may be deleted if
the policy does not contain a surrender charge. The phrase "known as
a surrender charge" may be deleted if the policy contains a penalty
but no surrender charge. If the policy contains both a penalty, or
penalties, and a surrender charge, the sentence shall state that
cancellation may result in  a "substantial penalty or
substantial penalties] and   "substantial penalties,
including  a surrender  charge," with either a
"substantial penalty" or "substantial penalties," whichever applies
to the product upon which the notice appears.   charge.
 "  Whether a charge constitutes a surrender charge or
a penalty shall be determined by the nature of the charge and not the
name given to the charge by the insurer. If the surrender charge is
called a "withdrawal charge" in the policy, the insurer shall add the
following sentence at the end of the notice:
   "In this policy the surrender charge is called a 'withdrawal
charge.'"
   (d) Every individual variable life insurance policy and every
individual variable annuity contract subject to this section, that is
delivered or issued for delivery in this state, shall have the
following notice printed on the front of the policy jacket or on the
cover page in 12-point bold print with one inch of space on all
sides, using the exact language in quotation marks below, with
whichever one of the two bracketed product descriptions that applies
to the product on which the notice appears:
      "IMPORTANT!

   You have purchased a variable life insurance policy or variable
annuity contract]. Carefully review it for limitations.
   This policy may be returned within 30 days from the date you
received it. During that 30-day period, your money will be placed in
a fixed account or money-market fund, unless you direct that the
premium be invested in a stock or bond portfolio underlying the
policy during the 30-day period. If you do not direct that the
premium be invested in a stock or bond portfolio, and if you return
the policy within the 30-day period, you will be entitled to a refund
of the premium and any policy fee paid. If you direct that the
premium be invested in a stock or bond portfolio during the 30-day
period, and if you return the policy during that period, you will be
entitled to a refund of the policy's account value on the day the
policy is received by the insurance company or agent who sold you
this policy, which could be less than the premium you paid for the
policy, plus any policy fee paid. A return of the policy after 30
days may result in a substantial penalty, known as a surrender
charge."

   The sentence "A return of the policy after 30 days may result in a
substantial penalty, known as a surrender charge" may be deleted if
the policy does not contain a surrender charge. If the policy
contains both a penalty, or penalties, and a surrender charge, the
sentence shall state that cancellation may result in  a
"substantial penalty or substantial penalties] and  
"substantial pena   lties,   including  a
surrender  charge," with either a "substantial penalty" or
"substantial penalties," whichever applies to the product upon which
the notice appears.   charge."  The phrase "known
as a surrender charge" may be deleted if the policy contains a
penalty but no surrender charge. Whether or not a charge constitutes
a surrender charge or a penalty will be determined by the nature of
the charge and not the name given to the charge by the insurer. If
the surrender charge is called a "withdrawal charge" in the policy,
the insurer shall add the following sentence at the end of the
notice:
   "In this policy the surrender charge is called a 'withdrawal
charge.'"
   (e) If the individual annuity contract is an immediate annuity
contract, the following sentence, using the exact language in
quotation marks below, in 12-point bold print, shall be added at the
end of the right to examine language required by this section and
before the one inch of space:

   "After the 30-day period has expired, you may not be able to get
your purchase payment money back in any manner, or in any manner
other than in annuity payments made according to the terms of your
contract. The insurance company or agent who sold you this contract
can explain if your contract has these restrictions."

   (f) This section does not apply to life insurance policies issued
in connection with a credit transaction or issued under a contractual
policy-change or conversion privilege provision contained in a
policy.
   (g) For purposes of this chapter, a senior citizen means an
individual who is 60 years of age or older on the date of purchase of
the policy.
   (h) General references to "policy" or "policies" in this section
refer to both life insurance policies and annuity contracts.
  SEC. 4.  Section 10127.13 of the Insurance Code is amended to read:

   10127.13.  (a) All individual life insurance policies and
individual annuity contracts for senior citizens that contain a
 surrender  charge  , including partial
  upon  surrender,  excess withdrawal
charges, or penalties   partial surrender, excess
withdrawal, or penalties  upon  surrender, 
 surrender  shall  disclose   contain a
notice disclosing  the location of the surrender
 charge,  surrender   the  charge
 time  period,  and surrender   the
 charge information,  as well as   and
 any associated penalty information, in bold 12-point print on
the front of the policy jacket or on the cover page of the policy.
   (b) A policy shall have just one cover page  , which shall
be the same page upon which any statutorily required notice of a
right to examine shall be set forth  .  If the notice
required by this s   ection and the statutorily required
right to examine notice are both on the cover page, as opposed to the
front cover of the policy jacket, they shall appear on the same
page. 
   (c) General references to "policy" in this section refer to both
life insurance policies and annuity contracts.
  SEC. 5.  Section 10509.6 of the Insurance Code is amended to read:
   10509.6.  Every life insurer that uses an agent in a life
insurance or annuity sale shall do the following:
   (a) Require with or as part of each completed application for life
insurance or annuity, a statement signed by the agent as to whether
he or she knows a replacement is or may be involved in the
transaction.
   (b) Where a replacement is involved:
   (1) Require from the agent with the application for life insurance
or annuity: (i) a list of all of the applicant's existing life
insurance or annuity to be replaced, and (ii) a copy of the
replacement notice provided the applicant pursuant to Section
10509.4. The existing life insurance or annuity shall be identified
by name of insurer, insured, and contract number. If a number has not
been assigned by the existing insurer, alternative identification,
such as an application or receipt number shall be listed.
   (2) Send to each existing life insurer a written communication
advising of the replacement or proposed replacement and the
identification information obtained pursuant to this section and a
policy summary, contract summary, or ledger statement containing
policy data on the proposed life insurance or annuity. Cost indices
and equivalent level annual dividend figures need not be included in
the policy summary or ledger statement. This written communication
shall be made within three working days of the date the application
is received in the replacing insurer's home or regional office, or
the date the proposed policy or contract is issued, whichever is
sooner.
   (3) Every existing life insurer or the insurer's agent that
undertakes a conservation shall, within 20 days from the date the
written communication plus the materials required in subdivisions (1)
and (2) are received by the existing insurer, furnish the
policyowner with a policy summary for the existing life insurance or
ledger statement containing policy data on the existing policy or
annuity. Information relating to premiums, cash values, death
benefits, and dividends, if any, shall be computed from the current
policy year of the existing life insurance. The policy summary or
ledger statement shall include the amount of any outstanding
indebtedness, the sum of any dividend accumulations or additions, and
may include any other information that is not in violation of any
regulation or statute. Cost indices and equivalent level annual
dividend figures need not be included. When annuities are involved,
the disclosure information shall be that in the contract summary.
   The replacing insurer may request the existing insurer to furnish
it with a copy of the summaries or ledger statement, which shall be
within five working days of the receipt of the request.
   (c) The replacing insurer shall maintain evidence of the "notice
regarding replacement," the policy summary, the contract summary, and
any ledger statements used, and a replacement register,
cross-indexed by replacing agent and existing insurer to be replaced.
The existing insurer shall maintain evidence of policy summaries,
contract summaries, or ledger statements used in any conservation.
Evidence that all requirements were met shall be maintained for at
least three years.
   (d) The replacing insurer shall provide on the front of the policy
jacket or on the cover page of its life insurance policy or annuity
contract or, alternatively, as a separate written document which is
delivered with the life insurance policy or annuity contract, a
notice stating that the owner has a right to an unconditional refund
of all premiums paid which right may be exercised within a period of
30 days commencing from the date of delivery of the contract. In the
case of variable annuities, and variable life insurance, return of
the contract during the cancellation period shall entitle the owner
to a refund of the account value and any policy fee paid. The account
value and policy fee shall be refunded by the insurer to the owner
within 30 days from the date that the insurer is notified that the
owner has canceled the contract.