Md. Code Regs. 31.13.03.17

Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 22, November 1, 2024

Section 31.13.03.17 - Prohibited Transactions

A. A person may not solicit, sell, or negotiate a group or individual policy of credit involuntary unemployment benefit insurance unless the person is licensed as an insurance producer in accordance with Insurance Article, Title 10, Subtitle 1, Annotated Code of Maryland.

B. Enroller.

(1) An enroller may not receive any form of commission, compensation, remuneration, or other benefit based on the enroller's activity in enrolling persons in group policies of credit involuntary unemployment benefit insurance.

(2) An enroller who is not also licensed as an insurance producer may not engage in soliciting, selling, or negotiating, or assist in soliciting, selling, or negotiating, an individual policy of credit involuntary unemployment benefit insurance.

C. Unfair Trade Practices.

(1) An insurer or insurance producer may not engage in any of the following practices in connection with the solicitation, sale, or negotiation of credit involuntary unemployment benefit insurance as an inducement to the sale of the insurance, and each of these practices is an unfair trade practice under Insurance Article, Title 27, Annotated Code of Maryland:

(a) Offering or granting to a creditor or to a person connected or affiliated with the creditor any special advantage or service not specified in the insurance contract;

(b) Agreeing to deposit with a bank or financial institution money or securities of the insurer or the insurance producer with the design or intent that the deposit reduce or take the place of a deposit of money or securities that otherwise would be required of the creditor or an affiliate of the creditor by the bank or financial institution as a compensating balance or offsetting deposit for a loan or other advance;

(c) Allowing the creditor to retain premiums on credit involuntary unemployment benefit insurance on policies issued to the creditor or on policies sold or collected by the creditor for more than 60 days after the due date of the premiums; or

(d) Depositing with the creditor or an affiliate of the creditor money or securities without interest or at a lesser rate of interest than is generally being paid by the creditor bank or financial institution to other depositors of like amounts.

(2) Section C(1)(d) of this regulation may not be construed to prohibit the maintenance by an insurer or insurance producer of demand deposits or premium deposit accounts that are reasonably necessary for use in the ordinary course of the insurer's or the insurance producer's business.

D. If advance loan payments are made before the date of involuntary unemployment of the debtor on a loan covered by single premium credit involuntary unemployment benefit insurance, or if the debtor, the beneficiary, or any other person makes payments on a loan after the date the debtor is first entitled to receive a benefit for involuntary unemployment, the insurer may not reduce the amount of payments that were scheduled to be paid under the provisions of the credit involuntary unemployment benefit insurance policy because of these loan payments.

E. Benefit Eligibility Requirements.

(1) Benefit eligibility requirements may not include a requirement that as of the date of loss of employment the insured debtor had been employed for a:

(a) Set number of hours per week; or

(b) Set period of time.

(2) The insurer may require only that the insured debtor had been employed and that separation from employment was the result of involuntary unemployment as defined in Regulation .04B(18) this chapter.

F. Credit involuntary unemployment benefit insurance may not be permitted in a package sold to any individual who is not eligible for coverage on the date of the application for coverage.

G. Reeligibility Conditions.

(1) A credit involuntary unemployment benefit insurance policy may impose conditions upon which an insured debtor becomes reeligible for credit unemployment benefits after a period of receiving benefits.

(2) If reeligibility conditions are required for full benefits for a subsequent period of unemployment, the conditions may not:

(a) Be more stringent than the initial eligibility conditions; and

(b) Require that the insured be actively at work for more than 30 consecutive days.

(3) If an insured debtor has not satisfied the reeligibility requirement at the time of a subsequent unemployment, the unemployment shall be considered a continuation of the prior unemployment with no waiting period, with the maximum benefit period equal to the unused portion of the maximum benefit period for the prior unemployment.

H. Return To Work.

(1) If a debtor was working full time on the date of involuntary unemployment and returns to work less than full time, the insurer shall consider the debtor to be involuntarily unemployed until the debtor returns to full-time employment.

(2) If a debtor was working less than full time on the date of involuntary unemployment and returns to work less than full time, the insurer may consider the debtor to be no longer involuntarily unemployed.

Md. Code Regs. 31.13.03.17