Md. Code Regs. 31.09.02.02

Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 24, December 2, 2024

Section 31.09.02.02 - Definitions

A. In this chapter, the following words have the meanings indicated.

B. Terms Defined.

(1) "Affiliate" of an insurer means:

(a) A person, directly or indirectly, controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the insurer;

(b) A person who regularly furnishes investment advice to the insurer with respect to its variable life insurance separate accounts for which a specific fee or commission is charged; or

(c) A director, officer, partner, or employee of the insurer, controlling or controlled person, or person providing investment advice or any member of the immediate family of this person.

(2) "Agent" means a person licensed in this State as an agent or broker with respect to the sale of life insurance.

(3) "Assumed investment rate" means the rate of investment return which would be required to be credited to a variable life insurance policy, after deduction of charges for taxes, investment expenses, and mortality and expense guarantees to maintain the variable death benefit equal at all times to the amount of death benefit, other than incidental insurance benefits, which would be payable under the plan of insurance if the death benefit did not vary according to the investment experience of the separate account.

(4) "Benefit base" means the amount not less than the amount specified under Regulation .06B(2) of this chapter.

(5) "Commissioner" means the Insurance Commissioner of Maryland.

(6) Control.

(a) "Control", "controlling", "controlled by", and "under common control with" means the possession, direct or indirect, of the power to direct or cause the direction of the management and policies of a person, whether through the ownership of voting securities, by contract other than a commercial contract for goods or nonmanagement services, or otherwise, unless the power is the result of an official position with or corporate office held by the person.

(b) "Control" shall be presumed to exist if any person, directly or indirectly, owns, controls, holds with the power to vote, or holds proxies representing more than 10 percent of the voting securities of any other person. This presumption may be rebutted by a showing made to the satisfaction of the Commissioner that control does not exist in fact. The Commissioner may determine, after furnishing all persons in interest notice of an opportunity to be heard, and making specific findings of fact to support the determination that control exists in fact, notwithstanding the absence of a presumption to that effect.

(7) "Flexible premium policy" means any variable life insurance policy other than a scheduled premium policy as specified under §B(15) of this regulation.

(8) "General account" means all assets of the insurer other than assets in separate accounts established pursuant to Insurance Article, 5-512 and 16-601-----16-603, Annotated Code of Maryland, or pursuant to the corresponding section of the insurance laws of the state of domicile of a foreign insurer or the state of entry of an alien insurer, whether or not the separate account is established for variable life insurance.

(9) "Incidental insurance benefit" means all insurance benefits in a variable life insurance policy, other than the variable death benefit and the minimum death benefit, including but not limited to accidental death and dismemberment benefits, disability income benefits, guaranteed insurability options, family income, or fixed benefit term riders.

(10) "May" is permissive.

(11) "Minimum death benefit" means the amount of the guaranteed death benefit, other than incidental insurance benefits, payable under a variable life insurance policy regardless of the investment performance of the separate account.

(12) "Net investment return" means the rate of investment return in a separate account to be applied to the benefit base after deduction of charges for taxes, investment expenses, and mortality and expense guarantees in accordance with the terms of the policy.

(13) "Person" means an individual, corporation, partnership, association, trust, or fund.

(14) "Policy processing day" means the day on which charges authorized in the policy are deducted from the cash value of the policy.

(15) "Scheduled premium policy" means a variable life insurance policy under which both the amount and timing of premium payments are fixed by the insurer.

(16) "Separate account" means a separate account established for variable life insurance pursuant to Insurance Article, 16-601-----16-603, Annotated Code of Maryland, or pursuant to the corresponding section of the insurance laws of the state of domicile of a foreign insurer or the state of entry of an alien insurer.

(17) "Shall" is mandatory.

(18) "Variable death benefit" means the amount of the death benefit, other than incidental insurance benefits, payable under a variable life insurance policy dependent on the investment performance of the separate account which the insurer would have to pay in the absence of the minimum death benefit.

(19) "Variable life insurance policy" means an individual policy which provides for life insurance which varies according to the investment experience of a separate account or accounts established and maintained by the insurer as to this policy, pursuant to Insurance Article, 16-601-----16-603, Annotated Code of Maryland, or pursuant to a corresponding section of the insurance laws of the state of domicile of a foreign insurer or the state of entry of an alien insurer.

Md. Code Regs. 31.09.02.02

Regulation .02 amended effective 45:10 Md. R. 504, eff. 5/21/2018