West Virginia Code 33-32-16 – Purchasing groups; exemption from certain laws relating to the group purchase of insurance
A purchasing group and its insurer or insurers shall be subject to all applicable laws of this state, except that a purchasing group and its insurer or insurers shall be exempt, in regard to liability insurance for the purchasing group, from any law that would:
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 33-32-16
- Insurance: means primary insurance, excess insurance,
reinsurance, surplus lines insurance and any other arrangement for shifting and distributing risk which is determined to be insurance under the laws of this state. See West Virginia Code 33-32-2
- Liability: means legal liability for damages (including costs of defense, legal costs and fees, and other claims expenses) because of injuries to other persons, damage to their property or other damage or loss to such other persons resulting from or arising out of:
(1) Any business (whether profit or nonprofit), trade, product, services (including professional services), premises or operations. See West Virginia Code 33-32-2
- Purchasing group: means any group which:
(1) Has as one of its purposes the purchase of liability insurance on a group basis. See West Virginia Code 33-32-2
- State: means any state of the United States or the District of Columbia. See West Virginia Code 33-32-2
(1) Prohibit the establishment of a purchasing group;
(2) Make it unlawful for an insurer to provide or offer to provide insurance on a basis providing, to a purchasing group or its members, advantages based on their loss and expense experience not afforded to other persons with respect to rates, policy forms, coverages or other matters;
(3) Prohibit a purchasing group or its members from purchasing insurance on a group basis described in subsection (b) of this section;
(4) Prohibit a purchasing group from obtaining insurance on a group basis because the group has not been in existence for a minimum period of time or because any member has not belonged to the group for a minimum period of time;
(5) Require that a purchasing group have a minimum number of members, common ownership or affiliation, or a certain legal form;
(6) Require that a certain percentage of a purchasing group obtain insurance on a group basis;
(7) Otherwise discriminate against a purchasing group or any of its members; or
(8) Require that any insurance policy issued to a purchasing group or any of its members be countersigned by an insurance agent or broker residing in this state.