The rights set forth below shall serve as standards to be
followed by the Mississippi Department of Insurance in exercising the
Department's powers and duties, in exercising administrative discretion, in
dispensing administrative interpretations of the law, and in regulating
insurance companies pursuant to the Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices Act,
Miss. Code Ann. $$83-5-29 through 83-5-51. These
rights include, but are not limited to, the following:
A. Policyholders shall have the right to
competitive pricing practices and marketing methods that enable them to
determine the best value among comparable coverage.
B. Policyholders shall have the right to
insurance advertising and other selling approaches that provide accurate and
balanced information on the benefits and limitations of a policy.
C. Policyholders shall have the right to
assurance that the insurance market in general and their insurance company in
particular is financially stable.
D. Policyholders shall have the right to
receive good service from competent, honest individuals and producers, and to
have their questions addressed promptly.
E. Policyholders shall have the right to a
policy in an easily readable format, to receive a complete policy, and to
request a duplicate or replacement policy as needed.
F. Policyholders shall have the right to
assurance that their insurance company is regulated to comply with Mississippi
laws requiring economic delivery of coverage and loss prevention measures.
G. Policyholders shall have the
right to balanced and positive regulation by the Mississippi Department of
Insurance.
H. Policyholders shall
have the right to request the license status of an insurance company or
producer.
I. Policyholders shall
have the right to receive in writing from their insurance company the reason
for any cancellation or nonrenewal of coverage. The written statement from the
insurance company must provide an adequate explanation for the cancellation or
nonrenewal of coverage.
J.
Policyholders shall have the right to cancel their policy and receive a refund
of any unearned premium. If a policy was funded by a premium finance company,
the unearned premium will be returned to the premium finance company to pay
toward the policyholder's financing loan.
K. Policyholders shall have the right to a
written notification detailing any change in policy provisions relating to
their coverage at renewal.
L.
Policyholders shall have the right to receive a written explanation of why a
claim is denied, in whole or in part.
M. Policyholders shall have the right to
request and receive from the insurance company any adjuster reports, engineer
reports, contractor reports, statements or documents which are not legally
privileged documents that the insurance company prepared, had prepared, or used
during its adjustment of the policyholder's claim. A company may keep
confidential any documents they prepare in conjunction with a fraud
investigation.
N. Policyholders
shall have the right to have any decision regarding the denial or nonrenewal of
their policy, or the adjustment of their rates not be based solely on the basis
of their credit history without consideration of other factors. If an insurance
company uses credit history, it must comply with the provisions set forth in 19
Miss. Admin. Code, Part 1, Chapter 31, "Use of Credit History and Insurance
Scores for Determining Rates and Eligibility for Personal Insurance", and the
Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act.
O. Policyholders shall have the right to
prevent an insurance company, agent, adjuster or financial institution from
disclosing their personal financial information to companies or entities that
are not affiliated with the insurance company or financial institution, subject
to the provisions set out in 19 Miss. Admin. Code, Part 1, Chapter 28, "Privacy
of Consumer Financial and Health Information Regulation".
P. Policyholders shall have the right to
receive at least thirty (30) days' notice of the nonrenewal of their policy
pursuant to the provisions of Miss. Code Ann.
§
83-5-28.
Q. Policyholders shall have the right to be
treated fairly and honestly when making a claim.
R. Policyholders shall have the right to
reject any settlement amount offered by the insurance company.
S. Policyholders shall have the right to file
a written complaint against any insurance company or insurance producer with
the Mississippi Department of Insurance, and to have that complaint
investigated by the Mississippi Department of Insurance.
On or after September 1, 2009, no homeowners' personal lines
residential property coverage insurance policy shall be delivered or issued for
delivery in this state, or at renewal, unless a copy of the Policyholder Bill
of Rights is included with the policy.
