| 1 | The Commerce Council recommends the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Council/Committee Substitute |
| 4 | Remove the entire bill and insert: |
| 5 | A bill to be entitled |
| 6 | An act relating to travel-limited life insurance coverage; |
| 7 | providing a short title; amending s. 626.9541, F.S.; |
| 8 | specifying prohibited activities by insurers for life |
| 9 | insurance coverage relating to lawful travel experiences |
| 10 | or plans; authorizing the Financial Services Commission to |
| 11 | adopt rules and provide certain limited exceptions based |
| 12 | on emergency conditions and public policy; requiring |
| 13 | market conduct examinations of life insurers to include a |
| 14 | review of certain applications; providing for trebling |
| 15 | certain administrative fines for certain violations; |
| 16 | requiring the Office of Insurance Regulation to report |
| 17 | annually to the Legislature; providing report |
| 18 | requirements; providing an effective date. |
| 19 |
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| 20 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 21 |
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| 22 | Section 1. This act may be cited as the "Freedom to Travel |
| 23 | Act." |
| 24 | Section 2. Paragraph (dd) is added to subsection (1) of |
| 25 | section 626.9541, Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 26 | 626.9541 Unfair methods of competition and unfair or |
| 27 | deceptive acts or practices defined.-- |
| 28 | (1) UNFAIR METHODS OF COMPETITION AND UNFAIR OR DECEPTIVE |
| 29 | ACTS.--The following are defined as unfair methods of |
| 30 | competition and unfair or deceptive acts or practices: |
| 31 | (dd) Life insurance limitations based on past foreign |
| 32 | travel experiences or future foreign travel plans.-- |
| 33 | 1. An insurer may not refuse life insurance to, refuse to |
| 34 | continue the life insurance of, or limit the amount, extent, or |
| 35 | kind of life insurance coverage available to an individual based |
| 36 | solely on the individual's past lawful foreign travel |
| 37 | experiences. |
| 38 | 2. An insurer may not refuse life insurance to, refuse to |
| 39 | continue the life insurance of, or limit the amount, extent, or |
| 40 | kind of life insurance coverage available to an individual based |
| 41 | solely on the individual's future lawful travel plans unless the |
| 42 | insurer can demonstrate and the Office of Insurance Regulation |
| 43 | determines that: |
| 44 | a. Insureds who travel are a separate actuarially |
| 45 | supportable class whose risk of loss is different from those |
| 46 | insureds who do not travel; and |
| 47 | b. Such risk classification is based upon sound actuarial |
| 48 | principles and actual or reasonably anticipated experience that |
| 49 | correlates to the risk of travel to a specific destination. |
| 50 | 3. The commission may adopt rules pursuant to ss. |
| 51 | 120.536(1) and 120.54 necessary to implement this paragraph and |
| 52 | may provide for limited exceptions that are based upon national |
| 53 | or international emergency conditions that affect the public |
| 54 | health, safety, and welfare and that are consistent with public |
| 55 | policy. |
| 56 | 4. Each market conduct examination of a life insurer |
| 57 | conducted pursuant to s. 624.3161 shall include a review of |
| 58 | every application under which such insurer refused to issue life |
| 59 | insurance, refused to continue life insurance, or limited the |
| 60 | amount, extent, or kind of life insurance issued, based upon |
| 61 | future lawful travel plans. |
| 62 | 5. The administrative fines provided in s. 624.4211(2) and |
| 63 | (3) shall be trebled for violations of this paragraph. |
| 64 | 6. The Office of Insurance Regulation shall report to the |
| 65 | President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of |
| 66 | Representatives by March 1, 2007, and on the same date annually |
| 67 | thereafter, on the implementation of this paragraph. The report |
| 68 | shall include, but not be limited to, the number of applications |
| 69 | under which life insurance was denied, continuance was refused, |
| 70 | or coverage was limited based on future travel plans, the number |
| 71 | of insurers taking such action, and the reason for taking each |
| 72 | such action. |
| 73 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2006. |