211 CMR 95.13 - Reports to Policyholders

Current through Register 1466, April 1, 2022

(1) Any insurer delivering or issuing for delivery in this state any variable life insurance policies shall mail to each variable life insurance policyholder at his or her last known address the following reports:

(a) Within 60 days after each anniversary of the policy, a report of the cash surrender value, cash value, death benefit, any partial withdrawal, partial surrender or policy loan, any interest charge, and any optional payments allowed pursuant to 211 CMR 95.08 under the policy, computed as of the policy anniversary date; provided, however, that such statement may be furnished within 30 days after a specified date in each policy year so long as the information contained therein is computed as of a date of nor more than 60 days prior to the mailing of such notice.

1. For all variable life insurance products, the report shall state that in accordance with the investment experience of the separate account, the cash values and the variable death benefit may increase or decrease, and shall prominently identify any value described therein which may be recomputed prior to the next statement required by this subsection. If the policy guarantees that the variable death benefit on the next policy anniversary date will not be less than the variable death benefit specified in such statement the statement shall be modified to so indicate.

2. For flexible premium policies, the report must contain a reconciliation of the change since the previous report in cash value and cash surrender value, if different, because of payments made (less deductions for expense charges), withdrawals, investment experience, insurance charges and any other charges made against the cash value. Reports for flexible premium policies must also show the projected cash value and cash surrender value, if different, as of one year from the end of the period covered by the report assuming that:

a. planned periodic premiums, if any, are paid as scheduled;

b. guaranteed costs of insurance are deducted; and

c. the net return is equal to the guaranteed rate or, in the absence of a guaranteed rate, is not greater than zero. If the projected value is less than zero, a warning message must be included that states that the policy may be in danger of terminating without value in the next 12 months unless additional premium is paid.

(b) Annually, a report including:

1. a summary of the financial statement of each separate account, based on the annual statement last filed with the Commissioner;

2. the net investment return of the separate account for the last year and, for each year after the first, a comparison of the investment rate of the separate account during the last year with the investment rate during prior years, up to a total of not less than five years when available;

3. a list of investments held by the separate account as of a date not earlier than the end of the last year for which an annual statement was filed with the Commissioner;

4. all annual charges, each of the items expressed as a dollar amount or as an annual percentage, levied against the separate account during the previous year;

5. a statement of any change, since the last report, in the investment objectives of the separate account, in any investment restriction or material quantitative or qualitative investment requirement applicable to the separate account, or in the investment adviser of the separate account; and

6. such further information as the Commissioner may require.

(c) For flexible premium policies, if the amounts available under the policy on any policy processing day to pay the charges authorized by the policy are less than the amount necessary to keep the policy in force until the next following policy processing day, a report indicating the minimum payment required under the terms of the policy to keep it in force and the length of the grace period for payment of such amount. The report shall be mailed no later than and within 30 days after the policy processing day on which the insurer determined that an insufficiency had occurred.

(d) Such additional reports concerning the variable life insurance operations of the variable life insurance separate accounts as the Commissioner shall deem appropriate.

(2) Specimen copies of reports distributed to policyholders in accordance with 211 CMR 95.13 shall be maintained by the insurer and shall be available to the Commissioner upon his or her request. If any material distributed to policyholders is found to be false, misleading, deceptive, or inaccurate in any material respect, the Commissioner may require the distribution of amended material. This provision in no way limits the Commissioner's authority to impose other sanctions as permitted by law.

Notes

211 CMR 95.13