26-14-107(b), the commissioner may disapprove by written order

26-14-107(b), the commissioner may disapprove by written order rates filed pursuant to W.S. 26-14-107(b) without hearing. The order shall specify in what respects such filing fails to meet the requirements of this chapter. Any insurer whose rates are disapproved under this section shall be given a hearing upon written request made within thirty (30) days of disapproval;

(ii) If at any time the commissioner finds that a rate applicable to insurance sold in a noncompetitive market does not comply with the standards set forth in W.S. 26-14-105, he may, after a hearing held upon not less than twenty (20) days written notice, issue an order in accordance with subsection (c) of this section, disapproving the rate. Such notice shall be sent to every insurer and rate service organization which adopted the rate and shall specify the matters to be considered at the hearing. The order shall not affect any contract or policy made or issued prior to the expiration of the period set forth in the order.

(c) If the commissioner disapproves a rate pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, he shall issue an order within thirty (30) days of the close of the hearing specifying in what respects the rate fails to meet the requirements of this chapter. The order shall state an effective date no sooner than forty-five (45) business days after the date of the order when the use of the rate shall be discontinued. The order shall not affect any policy made before the effective date of the order.

26-14-109. Advisory organizations; registration required; authorized activities; availability of services.

(a) No advisory organization shall provide any service relating to the rates of any insurer subject to this chapter, and no insurer shall utilize the services of such organization for such purposes unless the organization has registered under subsection (d) of this section.  (b) A registered advisory organization may perform any of the following activities:

(i) Develop statistical plans including territorial and class definitions;

(ii) Collect statistical data from members, subscribers or any other source;

(iii) Prepare and distribute pure premium data, adjusted for loss development and loss trending, in accordance with its statistical plans, and prepare and distribute rates including expenses and profits;

(iv) Prepare and distribute manuals of rating rules and rating schedules;

(v) Distribute information that is filed with the commissioner and open to public inspection;

(vi) Conduct research and on-site inspections in order to prepare classifications of public fire defenses;

(vii) Consult with public officials regarding public fire protection as it would affect members, subscribers and others;

(viii) Conduct research and collect statistics in order to discover, identify and classify information relating to causes or prevention of losses;

(ix) Prepare and file on behalf of an insurer policy forms and endorsements and consult with members, subscribers and others relative to their use and application;

(x) Conduct research and on-site inspections for the purpose of providing risk information relating to individual structures;

(xi) Collect, compile and distribute past and current prices of individual insurers if such information is made available to the general public;

(xii) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, advisory organizations may perform those activities allowed under W.S. 26-23-301 through 26-23-333.  (c) Repealed by Laws 1987, ch. 195, § 2.

(d) No advisory organization shall refuse to supply any authorized services for which it is registered in this state to any insurer authorized to do business in this state and offering to pay the fair and usual compensation for the services, nor shall an advisory organization require the purchase of any specific services as a condition to obtaining the services sought, provided the furnishing of the requested services does not place an unreasonable burden on the advisory organization.

(e) An advisory organization shall submit at the time of registration:

(i) A copy of its constitution, articles of association or incorporation, bylaws and any other rules or regulations governing the conduct of its business;

(ii) A list of its members and subscribers;

(iii) The name and address of one (1) or more residents of this state upon whom notices, process affecting it or on orders of the commissioner may be served;

(iv) Any other relevant information and documents that the commissioner may require.

(f) Every organization which has registered shall promptly notify the commissioner of every material change in the facts or in the documents on which its registration was based.

26-14-110. Records and reports; exchange of information.

(a) Insurers shall file with the commissioner, and the commissioner shall review, reasonable rules and plans for recording and reporting of loss and expense experience. The commissioner may designate one (1) or more advisory organizations to assist in gathering such experience and making compilations thereof. No insurer shall be required to record or report its experience in a manner inconsistent with its own rating system.

(b) The commissioner and every insurer and an advisory organization may exchange information and experience data with insurance regulatory officials, insurers, rate service organizations and advisory organizations in this and other states and may consult with them with respect to rate making and the application of rating systems.

26-14-111. Insurers and advisory organizations; monopolies prohibited; agreements to adhere prohibited.

(a) No insurer or advisory organization shall attempt to monopolize or combine or conspire with any other person to monopolize an insurance market in this state.

(b) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, no insurer shall agree with any other insurer, rate service organization or advisory organization to adhere to or use any rate, supplementary rate information, policy surveys, inspections or similar material.

(c) The fact that two (2) or more insurers, whether or not members or subscribers of any advisory organization, use consistently or intermittently the same rates, supplementary rate information, policy or bond forms, surveys, inspections or similar materials is not sufficient in itself to support a finding that an illegal agreement exists and may be used only for the purpose of supplementing or explaining other direct evidence of the existence of any such agreement.

(d) Two (2) or more insurers having a common ownership or operating in this state under common management or control may act in concert between or among themselves with respect to any matters pertaining to activities authorized in this chapter as if they constituted a single insurer.

26-14-112. Joint underwriting; pool and residual market activities.

(a) Insurers participating in joint underwriting, pools or residual market mechanisms may act in cooperation with each other in the making of rates, supplementary rate information, policy or bond forms, surveys, inspections and investigations, the furnishing of loss and expense statistics or other information and conducting research. Joint underwriting, pools and residual market mechanisms shall not be deemed rate advisory organizations.

(b) If, after notice and hearing, the commissioner finds that any activity or practice of an insurer participating in a joint underwriting or pooling mechanism is unfair or unreasonable, or otherwise inconsistent with the provisions or purposes of this chapter, he may issue a written order specifying in what respects such activity or practice is unfair, unreasonable, anti-competitive or otherwise inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter and require the discontinuance of such activity or practice.

(c) Every pool shall file with the commissioner a copy of its constitution, articles of incorporation, agreement or association, bylaws, rules and regulations governing activities, the name and address of a resident of this state upon whom notices, process and orders of the commissioner may be served and any changes or modifications thereof.

(d) Any residual market mechanism, plan or agreement to implement such a mechanism, and any changes or amendments thereto, shall be submitted in writing to the commissioner for approval, together with any information as he may reasonably require. The commissioner shall approve such agreements if they foster the use of rates which meet the standards prescribed by this chapter and activities and practices not inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter.

(e) The commissioner may review the operations of all residual market mechanisms to determine compliance with the provisions of this chapter. If, after a notice and hearing, the commissioner finds that the mechanisms are violating the provisions of this chapter, he may issue a written order to the parties involved specifying in what respects the operations violate the provisions of this chapter. He may further order the discontinuance or elimination of any operation.

26-14-113. Examinations; records; costs; report in lieu of examination.

(a) The commissioner may examine any insurer, pool, advisory organization or residual market mechanism to ascertain compliance with this chapter.

(b) Every insurer, pool, advisory organization and residual market mechanism shall maintain adequate records from which the commissioner may determine compliance with the provisions of this chapter. The records shall contain the experience, data, statistics and other information collected or used and shall be available to the commissioner for examination or inspection upon reasonable notice.  (c) The reasonable cost of an examination made pursuant to this section shall be paid by the examined party upon presentation to it of a detailed account of the costs.

(d) The commissioner may accept the report of an examination made by the insurance supervisory official of another state in lieu of an examination under this section.

26-14-114. Exemptions.

The commissioner may exempt any line of insurance from any or all of the provisions of this chapter for the purpose of relieving the line of insurance from filing provisions of this chapter.

26-14-115. Dividends.

Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to prohibit or regulate the payment of dividends, savings or unabsorbed premium deposits allowed or returned by insurers to their policyholders, members or subscribers. A plan for the payment of dividends, savings or unabsorbed premium deposits allowed or returned by insurers to their policyholders, members or subscribers shall not be deemed a rating plan or system.

26-14-116. Penalties; technical violations; revocation and suspension of license; written orders; contents.

(a) The commissioner may impose after notice and hearing a penalty of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) for each violation of this chapter. The penalty may be in addition to any other penalty provided by law. In no event shall penalties imposed by this subsection exceed fifty thousand dollars ($50,000.00) in the aggregate.

(b) Technical violations arising from systems or computer errors of the same type shall be treated as a single violation. In the event of an overcharge, if the insurer makes restitution including payment of interest, no penalty shall be imposed.

(c) The commissioner may suspend or revoke the license of any insurer or advisory organization which fails to comply with an order of the commissioner within the time prescribed by the order, or any extension thereof which the commissioner may grant.  (d) The commissioner may determine when a suspension of license shall become effective and the period of the suspension, which he may modify or rescind in any reasonable manner.

(e) No penalty shall be imposed and no license shall be suspended or revoked except upon a written order of the commissioner made after notice and hearing, which shall include a finding that the party against whom the proceedings were brought violated this chapter, specify the section or sections of the statutes violated, and indicate the penalty and taxes, if any, imposed.

26-14-117. Judicial review.

Any order, ruling, finding, decision or other act of the commissioner made pursuant to this chapter shall be subject to judicial review in accordance with the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act.

26-14-118. Notice and hearing.

(a) All notices rendered pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall be in writing and shall state clearly the nature and purpose of the hearing. All relevant facts, statutes and rules shall be specified so that a respondent is fully informed of the scope of the hearing, including specific allegations, if any. If a hearing is required, all notices shall designate a hearing date at least two (2) weeks from the date of the notice, unless such minimum notice period is waived by respondent.

(b) All hearings pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall be conducted in accordance with the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act to the extent the provisions are consistent with the procedural requirements contained in this chapter.

26-14-119. Repealed by Laws 1994, ch. 86, § 3.

CHAPTER 15 - THE INSURANCE CONTRACT

ARTICLE 1 IN GENERAL

26-15-101. Scope of chapter.  (a) This chapter applies to all insurance contracts and annuity contracts except:

(i) Reinsurance;

(ii) Policies or contracts not issued for delivery in this state nor delivered in this state;

(iii) Wet marine and transportation insurance.

26-15-102. Life insurance upon individual or person in whom he has insurable interest; "insurable interest" defined.

(a) Any individual of competent legal capacity may procure or effect an insurance contract upon his own life or body for the benefit of any person. Except as provided in W.S. 26-15-103, no person shall procure or cause to be procured any insurance contract upon the life or body of another individual unless the benefits under the contract are payable to the individual insured or his personal representatives, or to a person having, at the time when the contract is made, an insurable interest in the individual insured.

(b) If the beneficiary, assignee or other payee under any contract made in violation of this section receives from the insurer any benefits thereunder accruing upon the death, disablement or injury of the individual insured, the individual insured or his executor or administrator, as the case may be, may maintain an action to recover the benefits from the person receiving them.

(c) "Insurable interest" as to personal insurance means that any individual has an insurable interest in the life, body and health of himself, and of other persons as follows:

(i) In the case of individuals related closely by blood or by law, a substantial interest engendered by love and affection;

(ii) In the case of other persons, a lawful and substantial economic interest in having the life, health or bodily safety of the individual insured continue, as distinguished from an interest arising only by, or enhanced in value by, the death, disablement or injury of the individual insured; and  (iii) An individual party to a contract or option for the purchase or sale of an interest in a business partnership or firm, or of shares of stock of a closed corporation or of an interest in those shares, has an insurable interest in the life of each individual party to the contract and for the purposes of the contract only, in addition to any insurable interest which otherwise exists as to that individual's life.

(d) An insurer may rely upon all statements, declarations and representations made by an applicant for insurance relative to the applicant's insurable interest in the insured. No insurer incurs legal liability, except as set forth in the policy, by virtue of any untrue statements, declarations or representations relied upon in good faith.

26-15-103. Life insurance for benefit of charitable institutions.

(a) Contracts of life insurance may be made and entered into in which the person paying the consideration for the insurance has no insurable interest in the life of the person insured, if charitable, benevolent, educational or religious institutions are designated irrevocably as a beneficiary but not necessarily the primary beneficiary thereof.

(b) In making a contract as specified in subsection (a) of this section, the person paying the premium shall make and sign the application therefor as owner and shall designate a charitable, benevolent, educational or religious institution irrevocably as the beneficiary or one (1) of the beneficiaries of the policy. The application also shall be signed by the person whose life is to be insured.

(c) The contract is valid and binding among all of the parties thereto, notwithstanding that the owner has no insurable interest in the life of the person insured.

26-15-104. Insurable interest in property; "insurable interest" defined.

(a) No contract of insurance of property or of any interest in property or arising from property is enforceable as to the insurance except for the benefit of persons having an insurable interest in the things insured at the time of the loss.  (b) The measure of an insurable interest in property is the extent to which the insured might be directly or indirectly damnified by loss or impairment thereof.

(c) "Insurable interest" as used in this section means any actual, lawful and substantial economic interest in the safety or preservation of the subject of the insurance free from loss, destruction or pecuniary damage or impairment.

26-15-105. Purchase of life insurance by or for minors or any person of competent legal capacity.

(a) Any person of competent legal capacity may contract for insurance.

(b) Any minor not less than fifteen (15) years of age, notwithstanding his minority, may contract for or own annuities, or insurance, or affirm by novation or otherwise preexisting contracts for annuities or insurance upon his own life, body, health, property, liabilities or other interests, or on the person of another in whom the minor has an insurable interest. The minor, notwithstanding his minority, may exercise all rights and powers with respect to or under any contract for annuity or for insurance upon his own life, body or health, or any contract the minor effects upon his own property, liabilities or other interests, or any contract the minor owns or effects on the person of another, as might be exercised by a person of full legal age, and may at any time surrender his interest in any such contracts and give valid discharge for any benefit accruing or money payable thereunder. The minor, by reason of his minority, is not entitled to rescind, avoid or repudiate the contract, nor to rescind, avoid or repudiate any exercise of a right or privilege thereunder, except that such a minor not otherwise emancipated is not bound by any unperformed agreement to pay, by promissory note or otherwise, any premium on any such annuity or insurance contract.

(c) Any annuity contract or policy of life disability insurance procured by or for a minor under subsection (b) of this section, shall be made payable either to the minor or his estate or to a person having an insurable interest in the minor's life.

26-15-106. Application to be made by individual insured; exceptions.  (a) No life or disability insurance contract upon an individual, except a contract of group life insurance or of group or blanket disability insurance, shall be made or carried out unless at the time of the making of the contract the individual insured, being of competent legal capacity to contract, applies therefor or has consented thereto in writing, except:

(i) A spouse may carry out the insurance upon the other spouse;

(ii) Any person having an insurable interest in the life of a minor, or any person upon whom a minor is dependent for support and maintenance, may carry out insurance upon the life of or pertaining to the minor;

(iii) Family policies may be issued insuring any two (2) or more members of a family on an application signed by either parent, a stepparent or by a husband or wife.

26-15-107. Alteration of application prohibited; exceptions.

No alteration of any written application for any life or disability insurance policy shall be made by any person other than the applicant without his written consent, except that the insurer may make insertions for administrative purposes only in a manner as to indicate clearly that the insertions are not to be ascribed to the applicant.

26-15-108. Application as evidence.

(a) No application for the issuance of any life or disability insurance policy or annuity contract is admissible in evidence in any action relative to the policy or contract, unless a true copy of the application is attached to or otherwise made a part of the policy or contract when issued. This provision does not apply to industrial life insurance policies.

(b) If any life or disability insurance policy delivered in this state is reinstated or renewed, and the insured or the policy beneficiary or assignee makes written request to the insurer for a copy of the reinstatement or renewal application, if any, the insurer, within thirty (30) days after receipt of the request at its home office, shall deliver or mail to the person making the request a copy of the application reproduced by any legible means. If the copy is not delivered or mailed after having been requested, the insurer is precluded from introducing the application in evidence in any action or proceeding based upon or involving the policy or its reinstatement or renewal. In the case of a request from a beneficiary, the time within which the insurer is required to furnish a copy of the application does not begin to run until after receipt of evidence satisfactory to the insurer of the beneficiary's vested interest in the policy or contract.

(c) As to insurance other than life or disability insurance, no application for insurance signed by or on behalf of the insured is admissible in evidence in any action between the insured and the insurer arising out of the policy so applied for, if the insurer fails, at expiration of thirty (30) days after receipt of written demand therefor by or on behalf of the insured, to furnish to the insured a copy of the application reproduced by any legible means.

26-15-109. Statements in applications as representations and not as warranties; misrepresentations.

(a) Any statements and descriptions in any application for an insurance policy or annuity contract, by or in behalf of the insured or annuitant, are representations and not warranties. Misrepresentations, omissions, concealment of facts and incorrect statements do not prevent a recovery under the policy or contract unless either:

(i) Fraudulent; or

(ii) Material either to the acceptance of the risk, or to the hazard the insurer assumes; or

(iii) The insurer in good faith, if it knew the true facts as required by the application for the policy or contract or otherwise, would not have:

(A) Issued the policy or contract;

(B) Issued it at the same premium rate;

(C) Issued a policy or contract in as large an amount; or

(D) Provided coverage with respect to the hazard resulting in the loss.  26-15-110. Filing and approval of application forms.

(a) No basic insurance policy or annuity contract form, or application form if written application is required and is to be made a part of the policy or contract, or printed rider or endorsement form or form of renewal certificate, shall be delivered or issued for delivery in this state unless the form is filed with and approved by the commissioner or is approved as provided in W.S. 26-15-201. This provision does not apply to surety bonds, or to specially rated inland marine risks, nor to policies, riders, endorsements or forms of unique character designed for and used with relation to insurance upon a particular subject, or which relate to the manner of distribution of benefits or to the reservation of rights and benefits under life or disability insurance policies and are used at the request of the individual policyholder, contract holder or certificate holder. As to forms for use in property, marine, other than wet marine and transportation insurance, casualty and surety insurance coverages, the filing required by this subsection may be made by advisory and rating organizations on behalf of their members and subscribers. This provision does not prohibit any member or subscriber from filing the forms on its own behalf.

(b) Any filing shall be made not less than forty-five (45) days in advance of any delivery. At the expiration of forty-five (45) days the form filed is approved unless affirmatively approved or disapproved by the commissioner's order. Approval of any form by the commissioner constitutes a waiver of any unexpired portion of the waiting period. The commissioner may extend by not more than an additional forty-five (45) days the period within which he may affirmatively approve or disapprove any form, by giving notice to the insurer of the extension before expiration of the initial forty-five (45) day period. At the expiration of any extended period, and in the absence of prior affirmative approval or disapproval, any form is deemed approved. The commissioner, at any time, after notice and for cause shown, may withdraw any approval.

(c) Any order of the commissioner disapproving a form or withdrawing a previous approval shall state the grounds and the particulars for the withdrawal in such detail as to reasonably inform the insurer. The withdrawal of a previously approved form is effective at the expiration of the period the commissioner prescribes in the notice, but not less than thirty (30) days from the date of the notice.  (d) The commissioner, by order, may exempt from the requirements of this section for so long as he deems proper any insurance document or form or type thereof as specified in the order, to which, in his opinion:

(i) This section may not practicably be applied;

(ii) The filing and approval of which are not desirable or necessary for the public's protection; or

(iii) The document or form or type thereof has been approved under the provisions of the Interstate Insurance Product Regulation Compact as provided in W.S. 26-15-201.

(e) Appeals from the commissioner's orders disapproving a form or withdrawing a previous approval may be taken as provided in W.S. 26-2-125 through 26-2-129.

26-15-111. Filing and approval of application forms; grounds for disapproval.

(a) The commissioner, within forty-five (45) days after filing of any insurance policy, shall disapprove any form filed under W.S. 26-15-110, or withdraw any previous approval thereof, only if:

(i) The form:

(A) Is in any respect in violation of or does not comply with this code;

(B) Contains or incorporates by reference, if the incorporation is otherwise permissible, any inconsistent, ambiguous or misleading clauses, or exceptions and conditions which deceptively affect the risk purported to be assumed in the general coverage of the contract;

(C) Has any title, heading, or other indication of its provisions which is misleading; or

(D) Is printed or otherwise reproduced in such manner as to render any provision of the form substantially illegible; or

(ii) He finds that:  (A) The benefits provided in the policy are unreasonable in relation to the premiums charged; or

(B) The rates or classification are excessive, inadequate or unfairly discriminatory. This paragraph does not apply to any policy form for insurance except those lines of insurance deemed noncompetitive under W.S. 26-14-101 through