The Vermont Statutes Online

Title 8 : Banking and Insurance

Chapter 157 : Transfer and Assumption of Insurance Contracts

• § 8203. Definitions

  As used in this chapter:

  (1) “Assuming insurer” means the insurer that acquires an insurance obligation or risk from the transferring insurer pursuant to an assumption reinsurance agreement.

  (2) “Assumption reinsurance agreement” means any contract, whether or not coupled with a reinsurance or indemnity agreement, that:

  (A) transfers insurance obligations or risks of existing or in-force contracts of insurance from a transferring insurer to an assuming insurer; and

  (B) is intended to effect a novation of the transferred contract of insurance with the result that the assuming insurer becomes directly and solely liable to the policyholders of the transferring insurer and the transferring insurer’s insurance obligations or risks under the contracts are extinguished.

  (3) “Contract of insurance” means any written agreement between an insurer and policyholder pursuant to which the insurer, in exchange for premium or other consideration, agrees to assume an obligation or risk of the policyholder or to make payments on behalf of, or to, the policyholder or any beneficiary. “Contract of insurance” includes all property, casualty, life, health, accident, surety, title, and annuity business authorized to be written pursuant to the insurance laws of this State.

  (4) “Home service business” means insurance business on which premiums are collected on a weekly or monthly basis by an agent of the insurer.

  (5) “Notice of transfer” means the written notice to policyholders required by subsection 8204(a) of this title.

  (6) “Policyholder” means any individual or entity who owns or has the right to terminate or otherwise alter the terms of a contract of insurance. It includes any certificateholder whose certificate is in force on the proposed effective date of the assumption, if the certificateholder has the right to keep the certificate in force without change in benefit following termination of the group policy. The right to keep the certificate in force referred to in this subdivision shall not include the right to elect individual coverage arising out of a group contract continued pursuant to the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (“COBRA”), Section 601, et seq., of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 1161 et seq., or chapter 107, subchapter 2 of this title.

  (7) “Transferring insurer” means the insurer that transfers an insurance obligation or risk to an assuming insurer pursuant to an assumption reinsurance agreement. (Added 1993, No. 235 (Adj. Sess.), § 7.)