(a) All persons offering travel insurance to residents of this State are subject to the Unfair Methods of Competition and Unfair and Deceptive Acts and Practices Article of this Code, except as otherwise provided in this Section. In the event of a conflict between this Article and other provisions of this Code regarding the sale and marketing of travel insurance and travel protection plans, the provisions of this Article shall control.
     (b) Offering or selling a travel insurance policy that could never result in payment of any claims for any insured under the policy is an unfair trade practice under Section 424.
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Terms Used In Illinois Compiled Statutes 215 ILCS 5/1645

  • Aggregator site: means a website that provides access to information regarding insurance products from more than one insurer, including product and insurer information, for use in comparison shopping. See Illinois Compiled Statutes 215 ILCS 5/1630
  • Blanket travel insurance: means a policy of travel insurance issued to any eligible group providing coverage for specific classes of persons defined in the policy with coverage provided to all members of the eligible group without a separate charge to individual members of the eligible group. See Illinois Compiled Statutes 215 ILCS 5/1630
  • Fulfillment materials: means documentation sent to the purchaser of a travel protection plan confirming the purchase and providing the travel protection plan's coverage and assistance details. See Illinois Compiled Statutes 215 ILCS 5/1630
  • individual: shall include every infant member of the species homo sapiens who is born alive at any stage of development. See Illinois Compiled Statutes 5 ILCS 70/1.36
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Limited lines travel insurance producer: means one of the following:
             (1) a licensed managing general agent or
    
third-party administrator;
        (2) a licensed insurance producer, including a
    
limited lines producer; or
        (3) a travel administrator. See Illinois Compiled Statutes 215 ILCS 5/1630
  • State: when applied to different parts of the United States, may be construed to include the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" may be construed to include the said district and territories. See Illinois Compiled Statutes 5 ILCS 70/1.14
  • Travel insurance: means insurance coverage for personal risks incident to planned travel, including, but not limited to:
             (1) the interruption or cancellation of a trip or
    •     
    event;
            (2) the loss of baggage or personal effects;
             (3) damages to accommodations or rental vehicles;
             (4) sickness, accident, disability, or death
        
    occurring during travel;
            (5) emergency evacuation;
             (6) repatriation of remains; or
             (7) any other contractual obligations to indemnify
        
    or pay a specified amount to the traveler upon determinable contingencies related to travel as approved by the Director. See Illinois Compiled Statutes 215 ILCS 5/1630
  • Travel protection plans: means plans that provide one or more of the following: travel insurance, travel assistance services, and cancellation fee waivers. See Illinois Compiled Statutes 215 ILCS 5/1630
  • Travel retailer: means a business organization that makes, arranges, or offers travel services and, with respect to travel insurance, is limited to offering and disseminating as defined in this Section, unless otherwise licensed under subsection (b) of Section 1635. See Illinois Compiled Statutes 215 ILCS 5/1630

    •      (c) Marketing of travel insurance policies shall comply with the following:
             (1) All documents provided to consumers before the
        
    purchase of travel insurance, including, but not limited to, sales materials, advertising materials, and marketing materials, shall be consistent with the travel insurance policy itself, including, but not limited to, forms, endorsements, policies, rate filings, and certificates of insurance.
            (2) For travel insurance policies or certificates
        
    that contain preexisting condition exclusions, information and an opportunity to learn more about the preexisting condition exclusions shall be provided any time prior to the time of purchase, and in the coverage’s fulfillment materials.
            (3) The fulfillment materials and the information
        
    described in subparagraphs (A) through (D) of paragraph (1) of subsection (c) of Section 1635 shall be provided to a policyholder or certificate holder as soon as practicable following the purchase of a travel protection plan. Unless the insured has either started a covered trip or filed a claim under the travel insurance coverage, a policyholder or certificate holder may cancel a policy or certificate for a full refund of the travel protection plan price from the date of purchase of a travel protection plan until at least:
                (A) 15 days following the date of delivery of the
            
    travel protection plan’s fulfillment materials by postal mail; or
                (B) 10 days following the date of delivery of the
            
    travel protection plan’s fulfillment materials by means other than postal mail. For the purposes of this Section, delivery means handing fulfillment materials to the policyholder or certificate holder or sending fulfillment materials by postal mail or electronic means to the policyholder or certificate holder.
            (4) The company shall disclose in the policy
        
    documentation and fulfillment materials whether the travel insurance is primary or secondary to other applicable coverage.
            (5) Where travel insurance is marketed directly to
        
    a consumer through an insurer’s website or by others through an aggregator site, it shall not be an unfair trade practice or other violation of law where an accurate summary or short description of coverage is provided on the web page, so long as the consumer has access to the full provisions of the policy through electronic means.
        (d) No person offering, soliciting, or negotiating travel insurance or travel protection plans on an individual or group basis may do so by using negative option or opt out, which would require a consumer to take an affirmative action to deselect coverage, such as unchecking a box on an electronic form, when the consumer purchases a trip.
         (e) It shall be an unfair trade practice under Section 424 to market blanket travel insurance coverage as free.
         (f) Where a consumer’s destination jurisdiction requires insurance coverage, it shall not be an unfair trade practice to require that a consumer choose between the following options as a condition of purchasing a trip or travel package:
             (1) purchasing the coverage required by the
        
    destination jurisdiction through the travel retailer or limited lines travel insurance producer supplying the trip or travel package; or
            (2) agreeing to obtain and provide proof of
        
    coverage that meets the destination jurisdiction’s requirements before departure.
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