House Bill hb0747c1

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2001              CS/HB 747

        By the Committee on Insurance and Representative Brown






  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to credit insurance; amending

  3         s. 626.321, F.S.; authorizing the issuance of

  4         credit life insurance licenses to lending or

  5         financial institutions or creditors and

  6         authorizing such licensees to sell credit

  7         insurance; deleting certain license

  8         requirements for institutions with multiple

  9         offices; amending s. 627.679, F.S.; requiring

10         certain disclosures to credit life insurance

11         purchasers regarding the cancellation of such

12         coverage; providing an effective date.

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14  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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16         Section 1.  Paragraph (e) of subsection (1) of section

17  626.321, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

18         626.321  Limited licenses.--

19         (1)  The department shall issue to a qualified

20  individual, or a qualified individual or entity under

21  paragraphs (c), (d), and (e), a license as agent authorized to

22  transact a limited class of business in any of the following

23  categories:

24         (e)  Credit life or disability insurance.--License

25  covering only credit life or disability insurance. The license

26  may be issued only to an individual employed by a life or

27  health insurer as an officer or other salaried or commissioned

28  representative, or to an individual employed by or associated

29  with a lending or financial financing institution or creditor,

30  or to a lending or financial institution or creditor, and may

31  authorize the sale of such insurance only with respect to

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2001              CS/HB 747

    200-555-01






  1  borrowers or debtors of such lending or financial financing

  2  institution or creditor.  However, only the individual or

  3  entity whose tax identification number is used in receiving or

  4  is credited with receiving the commission from the sale of

  5  such insurance shall be the licensed agent of the insurer.  No

  6  individual while so licensed shall hold a license as an agent

  7  or solicitor as to any other or additional kind or class of

  8  life or health insurance coverage. An entity other than a

  9  lending or financial institution defined in s. 655.005(1)(g),

10  (h), or (p) holding a limited license under this paragraph is

11  shall also be authorized to sell credit insurance and credit

12  property insurance. An entity applying for a license under

13  this section:

14         1.  Is required to submit only one application for a

15  license under s. 626.171. The requirements of s. 626.171(5)

16  shall only apply to the officers and directors of the entity

17  submitting the application.

18         2.  Is required to obtain a license for each office,

19  branch office, or place of business making use of the entity's

20  business name by applying to the department for the license on

21  a simplified form developed by rule of the department for this

22  purpose.

23         3.  Is not required to pay any additional application

24  fees for a license issued to the offices or places of business

25  referenced in subsection (2), but is required to pay the

26  license fee as prescribed in s. 624.501, be appointed under s.

27  626.112, and pay the prescribed appointment fee under s.

28  624.501. The license obtained under this paragraph shall be

29  posted at the business location for which it was issued so as

30  to be readily visible to prospective purchasers of such

31  coverage.

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2001              CS/HB 747

    200-555-01






  1         Section 2.  Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section

  2  627.679, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

  3         627.679  Amount of insurance; disclosure.--

  4         (1)

  5         (c)  Before any credit life insurance may be sold, the

  6  creditor agent or agent shall obtain a separate written

  7  acknowledgment with respect to each of the following:

  8         1.  That the borrower understands that he or she has

  9  the option of assigning any other policy or policies the

10  borrower owns or may procure for the purpose of covering such

11  loan and that the policy need not be purchased from the

12  creditor agent in order to obtain the loan.

13         2.  That the borrower understands that the credit life

14  coverage may be deferred if, at the time of application, the

15  borrower is unable to engage in employment or unable to

16  perform normal activities of a person of like age and sex, if

17  the proposed credit life insurance policy contains this

18  restriction.

19         3.  That the borrower understands that the benefits

20  under the policy will terminate when the borrower reaches a

21  certain age and that the borrower's age is accurately

22  represented on the application or policy.

23

24  In lieu of the required written acknowledgments set forth in

25  this paragraph and s. 626.9551(2)(a), if the sale of credit

26  life insurance is solicited or consummated telephonically, the

27  creditor agent or agent shall provide written disclosures of

28  such options to the borrower within 30 days after the date the

29  coverage takes effect. The borrower shall be notified that he

30  or she has 30 days after the date the disclosures are received

31  to rescind the credit life insurance coverage.

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2001              CS/HB 747

    200-555-01






  1         Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2001.

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