Sec. 2251.002. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Commercial property insurance" means insurance coverage against loss caused by or resulting from loss, damage, or destruction of real or personal property provided through a commercial property insurance policy. The term includes any combination of:
(A) commercial fire or allied lines;
(B) commercial inland marine insurance;
(C) commercial crime coverage;
(D) boiler and machinery insurance other than explosion;
(E) glass insurance provided as part of other coverage; and
(F) as authorized by commissioner rule, insurance covering other perils or providing other coverages or other lines of first party property insurance.
(1-a) "Disallowed expenses" includes:
(A) administrative expenses, other than acquisition, loss control, and safety engineering expenses, that exceed 110 percent of the industry median for those expenses;
(B) lobbying expenses;
(C) advertising expenses, other than for advertising:
(i) directly related to the services or products provided by the insurer; or
(ii) designed and directed at loss prevention;
(D) amounts paid by an insurer:
(i) as damages in an action brought against the insurer for bad faith, fraud, or any matters other than payment under the insurance contract; or
(ii) as fees, fines, penalties, or exemplary damages for a civil or criminal violation of law;
(E) contributions to:
(i) social, religious, political, or fraternal organizations; or
(ii) organizations engaged in legislative advocacy;
(F) except as authorized by commissioner rule, fees and assessments paid to advisory organizations;
(G) any amount determined by the commissioner to be excess premiums charged by the insurer; and
(H) any unreasonably incurred expenses, as determined by the commissioner after notice and hearing.
(2) "Filer" means an insurer that files rates, prospective loss costs, or supplementary rating information under this chapter.
(3) "Prospective loss cost" means that portion of a rate that:
(A) does not include a provision for expenses or profit, other than loss adjustment expenses; and
(B) is based on historical aggregate losses and loss adjustment expenses projected by development to the ultimate value of those losses and expenses and projected through trending to a future point in time.
(4) "Rate" means the cost of insurance per exposure unit, whether expressed as a single number or as a prospective loss cost, adjusted to account for the treatment of expenses, profit, and individual insurer variation in loss experience, before applying individual risk variations based on loss or expense considerations.
(5) "Rating manual" means a publication or schedule that lists rules, classifications, territory codes and descriptions, rates, premiums, and other similar information used by an insurer to determine the applicable premium charged an insured.
(6) "Residential property insurance" means insurance coverage against loss to real or tangible personal property at a fixed location that is provided through a homeowners insurance policy, including a tenants insurance policy, a condominium owners insurance policy, or a residential fire and allied lines insurance policy.
(7) "Supplementary rating information" means any manual, rating schedule, plan of rules, rating rules, classification systems, territory codes and descriptions, rating plans, and other similar information used by the insurer to determine the applicable premium for an insured. The term includes factors and relativities, including increased limits factors, classification relativities, deductible relativities, premium discount, and other similar factors and rating plans such as experience, schedule, and retrospective rating.
(8) "Supporting information" means:
(A) the experience and judgment of the filer and the experience or information of other insurers or advisory organizations on which the filer relied;
(B) the interpretation of any other information on which the filer relied;
(C) a description of methods used in making a rate; and
(D) any other information the department receives from a filer as a response to a request under Section 38.001.
Added by Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 727 (H.B. 2017), Sec. 2, eff. April 1, 2007.
Amended by:
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1147 (H.B. 1951), Sec. 3.004, eff. September 1, 2011.
Acts 2017, 85th Leg., R.S., Ch. 254 (H.B. 1298), Sec. 1, eff. May 29, 2017.