Michigan Administrative Code
Department - Insurance and Financial Services
Insurance
Accident and Sickness Insurance Advertising
Section R. 500.666 - Introductory, initial, or special offers

(1) An advertisement of an individual policy shall not directly or by implication represent that a contract or combination of contracts is an introductory, initial, or special offer, that applicants will receive substantial advantages not available at a later date, or that the offer is available only to a specified group of individuals, unless that is the fact. An advertisement shall not contain phrases describing an enrollment period as "special" or "limited" or use similar words or phrases when the insurer uses the enrollment periods as the usual method of advertising accident and sickness insurance. The use of such words or phrases is permitted if the enrollment periods for a policy are separated by not less than 3 months.

(2) An enrollment period during which a particular insurance product may be purchased on an individual basis shall not be offered within this state unless there has been a lapse of not less than 3 months between the close of the immediately preceding enrollment period for the same product and the opening of the new enrollment period with not more than 2 enrollment periods in 1 calendar year for a particular insurance product. The advertisement shall indicate the date by which the applicant shall mail the application, which shall be not less than 10 days and not more than 40 days from the date that the enrollment period is advertised for the first time. This rule applies to all advertising media by any insurer. This rule does not apply to solicitations of employees or members of a particular group or association which otherwise would be eligible under specific provisions of the code for group, blanket, or franchise insurance. The phrase "any insurer" includes all the affiliated companies of a group of insurance companies under common management or control.

(3) This rule prohibits a statement or implication to the effect that only a specific number of policies will be sold or that a time is fixed for the discontinuance of the sale of the particular policy advertised because of special advantages available in the policy, unless that is the fact.

(4) The phrase "a particular insurance product" in subrule (2) of this rule means an insurance policy which provides substantially different benefits than those contained in any other policy. Different terms of renewability, an increase or decrease in the dollar amounts of benefits, or an increase or decrease in an elimination period or waiting period from those policies available during an enrollment period for another policy shall not be sufficient to constitute the product being offered as a different product eligible for concurrent or overlapping enrollment periods.

(5) Special awards, such as a safe driver award, shall not be used in connection with advertisements of accident or accident and sickness insurance.

(6) An advertisement shall not offer a policy which utilizes a reduced initial premium in a manner which overemphasizes the availability and the amount of the reduced initial premium. When an insurer charges an initial premium that differs in amount from the renewal premium payable on the same mode, the advertisement shall not display the amount of the reduced initial premium either more frequently or more prominently than the renewal premium, and both the reduced initial premium and the renewal premium shall be stated in juxtaposition in each portion of the advertisement where the reduced initial premium appears. The term "juxtaposition" means side by side or immediately above or below.