Statute Allowing Commercial P&C Forms Certifications Takes Effect July 1
The Florida legislature in Senate Bill 468 created a new section 627.4102, Florida Statutes, relating to the informational filing of property and casualty product forms. The bill was approved by Governor Scott and became Chapter Law 2013-66.
The new statute takes effect July 1, 2013. It allows insurers to certify the compliance of their property and casualty insurance forms with applicable statutes and rules, negating the need to submit those forms for review and approval by the Office of Insurance Regulation. The new statute does not apply, however, to workers compensation insurance forms or to personal lines forms.
The new statute codifies a process adopted by the OIR in administrative orders issued last year, most recently in an order numbered 130176-12., although the order also encompassed personal lines forms. The order by its terms expires Monday, June 24, 2013. Unless the order is extended by the OIR, the order’s expiration on June 24 will create a brief one-week period in which it is not effective and the new statute has not taken effect. Several sources reported last week that the OIR is considering an extension of the existing order, although a representative of the OIR commented that a final decision on that has not yet been made. In any event, the new law will enhance predictability for commercial property and casualty insurers regarding their options for submitting forms.