House Bill 1198

AN ACT TO CREATE THE DEPARTMENT OF INSURANCE TRANSPARENCY ACT; TO REQUIRE EACH INSURANCE COMPANY AUTHORIZED TO DO BUSINESS IN THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI TO PROVIDE POLICY AND PREMIUM INFORMATION TO THE DEPARTMENT OF INSURANCE; TO REQUIRE THE DEPARTMENT TO PROVIDE ON ITS WEBSITE AGGREGATE DATA, MAINTAINED SEPARATELY FOR HOMEOWNERS' AND COMMERCIAL PROPERTY INSURANCE POLICIES, OF THE NUMBER OF POLICIES WRITTEN, THE DIRECT EARNED PREMIUMS, AND THE DIRECT INCURRED LOSSES, REPRESENTING THE TOTAL OF EVERY ADMITTED INSURANCE COMPANY DOING BUSINESS IN THE STATE; TO REQUIRE THE DEPARTMENT TO POST ON ITS WEBSITE A COMPREHENSIVE DESCRIPTION OF THE ACTUARIAL MODEL USED BY THE DEPARTMENT FOR HOMEOWNER'S AND COMMERCIAL PROPERTIES RISK AND OTHER RELATED DATA; AND TO PROVIDE PENALTIES FOR INSURANCE COMPANY NONCOMPLIANCE; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the Department of Insurance Transparency Act.

SECTION 2. (1) Each insurance company authorized to do business in this state and which is a member of an insurance holding company system, annually shall submit to the Mississippi Department of Insurance, on or before October 1, reports on the total amount of direct incurred losses, the number of policies written and the direct earned premiums for the immediately previous calendar year. Each insurance company shall submit separate reports for homeowners' and commercial property insurance policies. In preparing the report to be filed with the department, each company shall arrange the aggregated totals by county and zip code.

(2) Based upon all submitted company reports, and any other information submitted to or otherwise required to be gathered by the department, the department shall compile and maintain a statewide database of inspection and shall post on the department's website, the aggregate amount of direct incurred losses, the number of policies written and the direct earned premiums, by county and zip code, by calendar year, on or before January 15, 2012. The department shall maintain separate posts within the database for homeowners' and commercial property insurance policies.

(3) The aggregate information compiled from the statewide database of inspection, and posted on the department website, shall be updated annually. The posted information shall include the aggregate amount of direct incurred losses, the number of policies written, and the direct earned premiums, by county and zip code, for each of the following perils:

(a) Fire;

(b) Wind and hail;

(d) Theft;

(e) Liability; and

(f) Any other category of loss determined by the department to meet the qualifications of this section.

SECTION 3. The department shall post on its website a comprehensive description of the ratemaking methodology that the department permits insurance companies to use in order to calculate or derive any elements of an appropriate premium level or rates for homeowners' and commercial property insurance policies.

SECTION 4. Each insurance company authorized to do business in this state shall provide the information required by this act, relating to the total losses, premiums and policies in each county by zip code, and their dollar value, by year, beginning with January 1, 1990. Based upon the information submitted, the department shall compile aggregate totals, as required under Section 1, by year, beginning with 2006, and post those aggregate totals, by county and zip code, on the department's website.

SECTION 5. (1) Upon written request of an insurance company, the commissioner may waive, or extend for up to an additional ninety (90) days, the October 1 reporting requirement imposed under Section 1 of this act. The request shall demonstrate a reasonable cause for waiving or extending the deadline.

(2) Any insurance company granted a ninety-day extension that fails to comply on or before the ninetieth day shall be fined Two Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500.00) per day, by the department until the date of compliance. Any funds collected under the authority of this subsection shall be deposited into the State General Fund.

(3) Any insurance company failing to comply for more than thirty (30) days after extension immediately shall have revoked or suspended all certificates of authority to do business in this state until such time as the insurance company is in compliance and shall have its authority to do business restored by the Commissioner of Insurance.

SECTION 6. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2011.