Virginia Code 38.2-5103: Risk retention groups not chartered in this Commonwealth
Risk retention groups chartered in states other than this Commonwealth and seeking to do business as a risk retention group in this Commonwealth shall observe and abide by the laws of this Commonwealth as follows:
Terms Used In Virginia Code 38.2-5103
- Commission: means the State Corporation Commission. See Virginia Code 38.2-100
- Commissioner: means the commissioner, director, or superintendent of insurance in a state other than the Commonwealth of Virginia. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
- Company: means any association, aggregate of individuals, business, corporation, individual, joint-stock company, Lloyds type of organization, organization, partnership, receiver, reciprocal or interinsurance exchange, trustee or society. See Virginia Code 38.2-100
- Completed operations liability: means liability arising out of the installation, maintenance, or repair of any product at a site which is not owned or controlled by (i) any person who performs that work or (ii) any person who hires an independent contractor to perform that work; but shall include liability for activities which are completed or abandoned before the date of the occurrence giving rise to the liability. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
- feasibility study: means an analysis which presents the expected activities and results of a risk retention group including, at a minimum:
1. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
- Hazardous financial condition: means that, based on its present or reasonably anticipated financial condition, a risk retention group, although not yet financially impaired or insolvent, is unlikely to be able (i) to meet obligations to policyholders with respect to known claims and reasonably anticipated claims or (ii) to pay other obligations in the normal course of business. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
- 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 Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
- Insurance company: means any company engaged in the business of making contracts of insurance. See Virginia Code 38.2-100
- 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.
- 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 (i) any business, whether profit or nonprofit, trade, product, services, including professional services, premises, or operations or (ii) any activity of any state or local government, or any agency or political subdivision thereof. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
- Person: means any association, aggregate of individuals, business, company, corporation, individual, joint-stock company, Lloyds type of organization, organization, partnership, receiver, reciprocal or interinsurance exchange, trustee or society. See Virginia Code 38.2-100
- Process: includes subpoenas, the summons and complaint in a civil action, and process in statutory actions. See Virginia Code 1-237
- Product liability: means liability for damages because of any personal injury, death, emotional harm, consequential economic damage, or property damage, including damages resulting from the loss of use of property, arising out of the manufacture, design, importation, distribution, packaging, labeling, lease, or sale of a product, but does not include the liability of any person for those damages if the product involved was in the possession of such a person when the incident giving rise to the claim occurred. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
- Risk retention group: means any corporation or other limited liability association:
1. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
- State: means any state of the United States or the District of Columbia. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
- Supreme Court: means the Supreme Court of Virginia. See Virginia Code 1-249
1. Before offering insurance in this Commonwealth, a risk retention group shall submit to the Commission on a form prescribed by the Commission:
a. A statement identifying the state or states in which the risk retention group is chartered and licensed as a liability insurance company, date of chartering, its principal place of business, and such other information including information on its membership, as the Commission may require to verify that the risk retention group is qualified under the definition set forth in this chapter;
b. A copy of its plan of operations or a feasibility study and revisions of such plan or study submitted to its state of domicile; however, the provision relating to the submission of a plan of operation or a feasibility study shall not apply with respect to product liability or completed operations liability as defined in this chapter which was offered before October 27, 1986, by any risk retention group which had been chartered and operating for not less than three years before such date;
c. A copy of any revision to its plan of operation or feasibility study required by this chapter at the same time that the revision is submitted to the Commissioner of its chartering state; and
d. A statement of registration which designates the clerk of the Commission as its agent for the purpose of receiving service of legal documents or process.
2. Any risk retention group doing business in this Commonwealth shall submit to the Commission:
a. A copy of the group’s financial statement submitted to its state of domicile, which shall be certified by an independent public accountant and contain a statement of opinion on loss and loss adjustment expense reserves made by a member of the American Academy of Actuaries or a loss reserve specialist who is qualified under criteria established by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners;
b. A copy of each examination of the risk retention group as certified by the commissioner or public official conducting the examination;
c. Upon request by the Commission, a copy of any information or document pertaining to any outside audit performed with respect to the risk retention group; and
d. Such information as may be required to verify its continuing qualification as a risk retention group under the definition set forth in this chapter.
3. All premiums paid for coverages within this Commonwealth to risk retention groups shall be subject to taxation, including the assessment set forth in § 38.2-400, at the same rate and subject to the same interest, fines and penalties for nonpayment as applicable to foreign admitted insurers. Each risk retention group shall pay the taxes for risks insured within the Commonwealth. Further, each risk retention group shall report all premiums paid to it for risks insured within this Commonwealth.
4. Any risk retention group, its agents and representatives, shall comply with § 38.2-510.
5. Any risk retention group shall comply with the provisions of §§ 38.2-500, 38.2-501, 38.2-502, 38.2-503, 38.2-504, 38.2-506, and 38.2-512 regarding deceptive, false, or fraudulent acts or practices. However, the provisions of this subdivision do not relieve a risk retention group from the requirements of any other state statutes regarding deceptive, false, or fraudulent acts or practices.
6. Any risk retention group must submit to an examination by the Commission to determine its financial condition if the commissioner of the jurisdiction in which the group is chartered has not initiated an examination or does not initiate an examination within sixty days after a request by the Commission. Any such examination shall be coordinated to avoid unjustified repetition and conducted in an expeditious manner and in accordance with the NAIC’s Examiner Handbook.
7. Every application form for insurance from a risk retention group and any policy issued by a risk retention group shall contain in ten point type on the front page and the declaration page, the following notice:
NOTICE
This policy is issued by your risk retention group. Your risk retention group may not be subject to all of the insurance laws and regulations of your state. State insurance insolvency guaranty funds are not available for your risk retention group.
8. The following acts by a risk retention group are hereby prohibited:
a. The solicitation or sale of insurance by a risk retention group to any person who is not eligible for membership in such group; and
b. The solicitation or sale of insurance by, or operation of, a risk retention group that is in a hazardous financial condition or is financially impaired.
9. No risk retention group shall be allowed to do business in this Commonwealth if an insurance company is directly or indirectly a member or owner of such risk retention group, other than in the case of a risk retention group all of whose members are insurance companies.
10. The terms of any insurance policy provided by a risk retention group shall not provide or be construed to provide insurance policy coverage prohibited generally by the laws of this Commonwealth or declared unlawful by the Supreme Court of Virginia. For the purpose of this subdivision, a risk retention group shall comply with §§ 38.2-227, 38.2-2200, 38.2-2204 and any other applicable laws of this Commonwealth.
11. A risk retention group not chartered in this Commonwealth and doing business in this Commonwealth shall comply with a lawful order issued in a voluntary dissolution proceeding or in a delinquency proceeding commenced by a state insurance commissioner or the Commission if there has been a finding of financial impairment after an examination under this section.
1987, c. 585; 1992, c. 588.