South Carolina Code of Regulations
Chapter 69 - DEPARTMENT OF INSURANCE
Section 69-3 - Definitions
Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 3, March 22, 2024
1. Except as may be otherwise set forth by the Statutes of this State, the following words and phrases, whenever and wherever they appear in matters under the cognizance of this Commission, shall have the meaning ascribed herein:
Accepting insurer--The Company that agrees to insure the risk.
Acquisition cost--That portion of premium, or part of a rate, representing the costs of securing lines of insurance.
Adjustor--A person who determines the extent of insured losses and assists in settling, or attempts to settle claims, usually representing the insurer.
Admitted assets--Those assets of an insurer which conform to the regulations of the South Carolina Insurance Commission.
Advisory organization--An organization that formulates policy and principles without the authority to apply them.
Affiliate--A corporation of which a majority of the capital stock is owned or controlled by any or all of the stockholders, directors or officers of another corporation, who also own or control a majority of the stock of such other corporation.
Agent--As defined in Section 38-43-10 of the S. C. Code of Laws, 1976.
Alien insurer--An insurer formed under the laws of a country other than the United States of America, its States, Commonwealths, Territories or insular possessions.
All risks--A term commonly used in insurance to denote the coverage of damage or loss of property from all hazards except depreciation, deterioration and wear and tear.
Ancillary state--Any state other than a domiciliary state.
Appraisal--Estimate of value made by qualified, impartial and disinterested persons, duly appointed for such purpose.
Articles--Articles of incorporation and all amendments thereto.
Assessment--An apportionment or call made on the entire membership of a mutual company or association for definite contributions or payment of money on account of losses sustained by particular members.
Assigned risk--The protection of a specific insurance risk that has been directed to a given insurer by qualified authority.
Assuming insurer--The company, party to a reinsurance transaction, which assumes insurance, annuity and endowment risks.
Authorized insurer--An insurer duly licensed to do business in this State.
Average rate--A composite unit measuring the various perils of more than a single subject of insurance and usually at separate locations, expressed in dollars and cents per $100.00 of protection.
Basic rate--The foundation unit expressed in monetary amounts to which fractional amounts are added to accurately develop the correct final rate for the insurance exposure.
Blanket coverage--Insurance which contemplates that the risk is shifting, fluctuating or varying, and which covers a class of property or persons rather than any particular thing or persons.
Board of directors--Synonymous with board of trustees, and means the body having power and responsibility for the management and control of a corporation, fraternal benefit association or other association, by whatever name called, and the advisory body having similar powers in reference to a reciprocal insurer or Lloyds underwriters.
Broker--As defined in Section 38-45-10, S. C. Code of Laws, 1976.
Brokerage--Any arrangement or agreement whereby any agent can be held to be the agent of the insured and not of the insurer, or whereby an agent is permitted to solicit or place any class of insurance other than those authorized to be issued in South Carolina by such agent's insurer.
Bureau--An organization designed to render specific services in regard to insurance.
Capital--The aggregate amount paid in on the shares of capital stock of a corporation issued and outstanding, and equal to the par or declared value of the stock issued.
Capital stock--The aggregate amount of the par or declared value of all shares of capital stock.
Ceding company--The Company, party to a reinsurance transaction, whose insurance, annuity and endowment risks or obligations are assumed.
Certificate of insurance--A memorandum copy, complete or abbreviated, of an insurance contract.
Charter--The basic instrument, by whatever name called, prescribing the powers, purposes and organization of a corporation.
Chief Insurance Commissioner--The chief officer of the Insurance Department, appointed by the Insurance Commission.
Co-insurance--A stipulation or requirement that the insured undertakes to be his own insurer to the extent that he fails to maintain insurance of a given percentage of the value of the property against loss or damage.
Commission--That part of the premium paid to the agent as compensation for his services.
Corporation--Except as otherwise indicated, "corporation" means a corporation formed or existing under the laws of this State.
Debit--A defined geographical area assigned to a particular agent, usually for the writing of industrial insurance.
Debit agent--One who collects weekly, bi-weekly or monthly premiums from a number of policyholders, generally small policies, in a designated territory, and generally industrial insurance.
Decreasing interest insurance--Same as decreasing balance insurance. Insurance written on a risk, generally in connection with a loan, wherein the coverage decreases commensurate with the decrease of obligation.
Department--The Insurance Department of this State; also, the Insurance Commission of this State.
Deputy--The first, or other deputy chief insurance commissioner of this State, so appointed by the Chief Insurance Commissioner.
Deviation--A departure, either in rate or coverage, from the prevailing standards.
Dividends--The excess of premiums collected, over costs of insurance, returned or credited to the policyholder.
Domestic insurer--An insurer formed under the laws of this State.
Domiciliary state--The State in which an insurer is incorporated or organized, or in the case of an insurer incorporated or organized in a foreign country, the State in which such insurer, having become authorized to do business in such State, has designated as its domiciliary State and/or State of entry into the United States.
Earned premium--That portion of the gross premium absorbed, at a given time, by costs of administration, risk, and profit.
Fire insurance and Allied lines--Insurance providing indemnity to the insured in case of loss or damage occasioned by fire and such other forms of property insurance as are undertaken by fire insurance companies in addition to marine and inland marine insurance.
Foreign domesticated insurer--A foreign insurer licensed to do business in this State.
Foreign insurer--An insurer, not an alien insurer, formed under laws other than the laws of this State.
Fraternal Benefit Association--As defined in Section 38-37-10, S. C. Code of Laws, 1976.
General Assets--All property, real, personal, or otherwise, not specifically mortgaged, pledged, deposited, or otherwise encumbered for the security or benefit of specified persons or a limited class or classes of persons and as to such specifically encumbered property the term includes such property or its proceeds in excess of the amount necessary to discharge the sum or sums secured thereby. Assets held in trust and assets held on deposit for the security or benefit of all policyholders, or all policyholders and creditors in the United States, shall be deemed general assets.
Gross Premium--The whole amount of the money consideration, given at fixed intervals during the lifetime of a policy of insurance, in exchange for the insurance set forth in the policy.
Group Insurance--A form of personal insurance which is issued to members of an organized body qualified, and not specifically prohibited, to be an insured, in which individual insurances are placed upon the persons of each member of that group, but in which the group acts as an entity in the payment of premiums, inception of the contract, and the like.
Holding company--Has the same meaning as parent corporation. (See "subsidiary".)
Incorporator--A person, natural or corporate, who signs the articles of incorporation.
Insurance--A contract whereby one undertakes to indemnify another or pay a specified amount upon determinable contingencies.
a. Accident Insurance--Insurance against loss or damage due to unexpected injury to the person insured and resulting in disability or death.
b. Casualty Insurance--Those forms of indemnity providing for payment for loss or damage, resulting from accidental or some unanticipated contingency, except fire and the elements.
c. Credit Insurance--An indemnity to merchants or traders against the insolvency of customers to whom they extend credit and under the Small Loan Act, various insurances on the lives, property and health of borrowers to the extent of the amount loaned and unrepaid.
d. Fidelity Insurance--Insurance against loss from the want of honesty, integrity or fidelity of employees or others in a position of trust.
e. Fire Insurance--A contract of indemnity against loss by fire and lightning.
f. Group Insurance--See specific heading.
g. Health Insurance--A contract of indemnity against expense and loss of time resulting from disease.
h. Industrial Insurance--A plan of insurance under which policies of insurance are issued in consideration of weekly, bi-weekly or monthly payments.
i. Inland Marine Insurance--A contract of indemnity against loss suffered in connection with inland land or water transportation or with communications equipment.
j. Liability Insurance--Insurance against loss or liability on account of bodily or property injury sustained by others.
k. Life Insurance--A contract whereby in consideration of the payment of premiums the insurer engages to pay a certain sum upon the death of the insured.
l. Marine Insurance--A contract of indemnity against loss from marine perils.
m. Reciprocal Insurance--See specific heading.
n. Surety Insurance--An insurance contract whereby one, for a consideration, agrees to indemnify another against losses arising from the want of integrity, fidelity or solvency of employees and persons holding positions of trust, or against insolvency of losses from nonpayments of notes and other evidence of indebtedness, or against other breaches of contract. As generally used, this insurance is synonymous with guaranty insurance.
Insurance rate--The mathematical figure per $100 of insurance which determines the premium.
Insurer--Any legal entity, engaged or attempting to engage in the business of making insurance or surety contracts.
Level insurance--Insurance in which the amount of insurance benefit does not decrease during its term.
License--A certificate of authority, issued by a qualified public agency, to act within prescribed limits.
Lien-endorsement coverage--An endorsement added to an automobile physical damage policy indemnifying a lending agency against loss resulting from prior existing liens.
Lodge--As set forth in Section 38-37-20, S. C. Code of Laws, 1976.
Member--One who holds a contract of insurance or is insured in an insurance company other than a stock corporation.
Minimum surplus--The minimum amount by which the admitted assets of an insurer, over and above the capital stock, must exceed its liabilities, in order to be licensed to do business in this State.
Multiple line insurance--A policy of insurance insuring more than one class of risk.
Net premium--That portion of the gross premium remaining after adjustments of debits, credits and dividends.
Non-Recording insurance--An insurance contract protecting a lender from loss occasioned by his failure to record a mortgage given as security for the loan made.
Officer--Any person charged with active management and control, in an executive capacity, of the affairs of a corporation.
Parent corporation--See "subsidiary".
Person--Any legal entity.
Policy--A contract of insurance.
Policyholder--Holder of a contract of insurance.
Preferred claim--Any claim with respect to which the law of a State or of the United States accords priority of payment from the general assets of the insurer.
Premium--Money or any other thing of value paid or given in consideration of a contract of insurance.
Premium reserves--A fund set aside for the payment of future benefits under a policy.
Reciprocal insurance exchange--A group or association of persons cooperating through an attorney-in-fact for the purpose of insuring themselves and each other.
Reinsurance--The assumption of a portion of the risk on a policy by another insurer.
Renewal license--A license which becomes effective immediately following the termination of a license previously issued and in force, and which differs from such previous license only in respect to the date of expiration.
Return premium--Return to the policyholder of the unearned portion of a premium upon cancellation, or adjustment in rate, of a policy.
Shareholder--A holder of record of shares of stock in a corporation.
Short rate--A penalty rate, using percentages slightly higher than would result from pro-rata calculations.
Single interest insurance--Insurance in which the benefit amount decreases during its term in accordance with predetermined scale.
Specific insurance--A contract of insurance which definitively describes the thing insured and the amount of insurance applying thereto.
Subsidiary--A corporation of which the majority of the capital stock is owned or controlled by another corporation, called the "parent corporation".
Surplus to policyholders--The excess of total admitted assets over the liabilities of an insurer which shall be the sum of all capital and surplus accounts minus any impairment thereof.
Unauthorized insurer--Any insurer not authorized to do business in this State.
Unearned premium--That portion of the gross premium, at a given time, that is unearned or unexhausted by the earned premium.
Unearned premium reserve--Funds, equal to the unearned premium, set aside for contingencies.
