Section 50. Premiums

A. An amount that is a premium for a policy shall be referred to in any advertisement only as a premium. The use of words such as "deposit," "deposit premium," "investment," or other misleading or confusing terminology to refer to a premium is prohibited.

B. An advertisement shall not contain a statement or representation that premiums paid for a policy can be withdrawn under the terms of the policy. Reference may be made to amounts paid into an advance premium fund, which are intended to pay premiums at a future time, to the effect that they may be withdrawn under the conditions of the prepayment agreement. Reference also may be made to withdrawal rights under any unconditional premium refund offer.

C. An advertisement for a policy with nonlevel premiums shall prominently describe the premium changes.

D. An advertisement in which the insurer describes a policy that reserves the right to change the amount of the premium during the policy term shall prominently describe this feature.

E. An advertisement for a policy with pure endowment benefits payable within the premium paying period shall contain information regarding the premium charged in a clearly identified separate amount. The specific amount of each separate endowment shall be shown in dollar amounts only. An advertisement shall not represent a pure endowment benefit as a "profit" or "return" on the premium paid, rather than a policy benefit for which a specified premium is paid.

F. An advertisement shall not imply the existence of an actuarial relationship between a specific premium or portion thereof, and a specific benefit or portion thereof, provided under a policy where, in fact, none exists. No premium or a portion of a premium shall be represented as an "additional," "separate," or "special" premium unless there is an actuarial relationship between the premium or portion thereof, and some specifically identifiable benefit or portion thereof.

G. No artificial relationships among premiums, interest rates, and benefits or portions thereof shall be implied or created.

H. An advertisement shall not represent that premium payments will not be required for each year of the policy in order to maintain the illustrated death benefits, unless that is the fact.

I. An advertisement shall not use the term "vanish," "vanishing premium," or a similar term that implies the policy becomes paid up, to describe a plan using nonguaranteed elements to pay a portion of future premiums.

Historical Notes

Derived from Volume 27, Issue 14, eff. July 1, 2011.

Statutory Authority

§§ 12.1-13 and 38.2-223 of the Code of Virginia.