Unauthorized Premiums; Unlawful Inducements

  1. Law
  2. Georgia Code
  3. Insurance
  4. Regulation of Rates, Underwriting Rules, and Related Organizations
  5. Unauthorized Premiums; Unlawful Inducements

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  1. As used in this Code section, the term:
    1. "Gift certificate" shall have the same meaning as provided in Code Section 10-1-393.
    2. "Insurance" includes suretyship.
    3. "Policy" includes bond.
    4. "Store gift card" shall have the same meaning as provided in Code Section 10-1-393.
  2. No broker or agent shall knowingly charge, demand, or receive a premium for any policy of insurance except in accordance with this chapter.
  3. No insurer or employee of such insurer and no broker or agent shall pay, allow, or give, or offer to pay, allow, or give, directly or indirectly as an inducement to insurance or after insurance has been effected, any rebate, discount, abatement, credit, or reduction of the premium named in a policy of insurance, or any special favor or advantage in the dividends or other benefits to accrue on such policy of insurance, or any valuable consideration or inducement whatever, not specified in the policy of insurance, except to the extent provided for in an applicable filing. No insured named in a policy of insurance nor any employee of the insured shall knowingly receive or accept, directly or indirectly, any such rebate, discount, abatement, credit, or reduction of premium, or any special favor or advantage or valuable consideration or inducement.
  4. Nothing in this Code section shall be construed as prohibiting the payment of commissions or other compensation to duly licensed agents and brokers, nor as prohibiting any insurer from allowing or returning to its participating policyholders, members, or subscribers dividends, savings, or unabsorbed premium deposits.
  5. Nothing in this Code section shall be construed as prohibiting the payment for food or refreshments by an insurer or employee of such insurer or a broker or an agent for current or prospective clients during sales presentations and seminars, provided that no insurance or annuity applications or contracts are offered or accepted at such presentations or seminars.
  6. Nothing in this Code section shall be construed as prohibiting an insurer or employee of such insurer or a broker or an agent from advertising or conducting promotional programs by insurers or insurance producers whereby prizes, goods, wares, store gift cards, gift certificates, sporting event tickets, or merchandise, not exceeding $100.00 in value per customer in the aggregate in any one calendar year, are given to current or prospective customers; provided, however, that the giving of any item or items of value under this subsection shall not be contingent on the sale or renewal of a policy.

(Code 1933, § 56-535, enacted by Ga. L. 1967, p. 684, § 1; Ga. L. 2005, p. 563, § 3/HB 407; Ga. L. 2006, p. 72, § 33/SB 465; Ga. L. 2016, p. 381, § 2/HB 784; Ga. L. 2019, p. 337, § 1-52/SB 132.)

The 2019 amendment, effective July 1, 2019, substituted "employee of such insurer or a broker or an agent" for "an agent, broker, or employee of an insurer" in the middle of subsection (e); and substituted "an insurer or employee of such insurer or a broker or an agent" for "insurers or insurance producers" near the beginning of subsection (f).

Law reviews.

- For article, "The Regulation of Group Property and Liability Insurance," see 20 J. of Pub. L. 479 (1971).

JUDICIAL DECISIONS

Editor's notes.

- In light of the similarity of the statutory provisions, annotations decided under former Code 1933, §§ 56-218 and 56-9903 are included in the annotations for this Code section.

Settlement with beneficiary held not to involve rebate of premiums.

- Promise of defendant to pay widow $600.00 in consideration of the widow ceasing to attempt to insist that the widow receive "20 installments certain" from proceeds of the deceased husband's life insurance, as directed by his will, rather than an annuity purchased with such proceeds, did not involve a contract to rebate an insurance premium at the instance or in behalf of the insurer, as prohibited by statute in this state. Wolfe v. Breman, 69 Ga. App. 813, 26 S.E.2d 633 (1943) (decided under former Code 1933, § 56-218, 56-9903).

OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

Validity of sales promotions.

- An insurer who offers a gift to a prospective insured in exchange for the opportunity to compare the insured's current policy violates O.C.G.A. § 33-6-4(b)(8)(B) and subsection (b) of O.C.G.A. § 33-9-36, but an insurer who makes a charitable contribution based on a portion of the total sales of a particular policy for a specified period of time violates neither code provision. 1984 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 84-78.

RESEARCH REFERENCES

Am. Jur. 2d.

- 43 Am. Jur. 2d, Insurance, §§ 817, 818.

ALR.

- Apportionment of divisible surplus of insurance company between different policies, 108 A.L.R. 1212.

Dividends on policies as violation of statutory prohibition of rebate, remission, refund, or other discrimination in respect of premiums, 137 A.L.R. 1029.

Insurance anti-rebate statutes: validity and construction, 90 A.L.R.4th 213.


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