769. (a) After a written agency or written brokerage contract,
where the broker-agent represents the insurer, has been in effect for
at least one year, it shall not be terminated or amended by an
insurer, except by mutual agreement, unless 120 days' advance written
notice has been given by the insurer to the broker-agent.
(b) The advance notice required by this section does not apply if
the broker-agent has done any of the following:
(1) Exceeded his or her binding authority under the agency or
brokerage contract.
(2) Violated the written underwriting rules or regulations of the
insurer, a copy of which has been provided to the broker-agent, which
misleads the insurer concerning the nature or extent of a risk.
(3) Failed to comply with the fiduciary requirements set forth in
Section 1733, 1734, 1734.5, or 1735.
(4) Failed, either within 10 days after written notice upon
failure to remit funds within the time limits set forth in the agency
or brokerage contract or within 30 days after written demand if the
agency or brokerage contract does not set forth time limits, to remit
funds due and owing to the insurer.
(5) Had his or her license suspended or revoked by the
commissioner.
(6) Engaged in fraudulent acts affecting his or her relationship
with the insurer or its insureds.
(7) Transferred ownership, control, or servicing of policies
written with the insurer to another insurer, or to an entity directly
or indirectly owned or controlled by an insurer or to an entity
directly or indirectly owning or controlling an insurer.
(c) When a broker-agent's contract is terminated as provided by
this section, the rights, duties, and obligations set forth in the
terminated contract of the broker-agent having property rights in
renewals shall continue solely with respect to policies then in force
or renewed as provided by this section until those policies are
canceled in accordance with law, placed by the broker-agent with
another insurer, or have expired. The broker-agent's authority during
the period following notice of termination of his or her contract
shall be governed by the written contract between the broker-agent
and the insurer, except that, after the receipt of the notice of
termination, the broker-agent shall not bind new risks on behalf of
the insurer, renew policies except as permitted by this section, or
otherwise increase the obligation of the insurer, without the express
approval of the insurer or in accordance with the terms of an
existing policy.
(d) If a terminated broker-agent is unable, after making a good
faith effort, to place existing policies with another insurer, the
insurer then insuring the risk shall, at the broker-agent's request,
renew any insurance contract written by the broker-agent for the
insurer for one policy term or a period of one year, whichever is
shorter. Where the insurer is prohibited by subdivision (c) of
Section 1861.03 from nonrenewing the risk, the insurer shall continue
to compensate the broker-agent for servicing the policies written by
the insurer prior to termination of the broker-agent relationship
until the insurer can cancel or nonrenew the policyholder pursuant to
statute or the broker-agent moves the policyholder to another
insurer but, in no event, shall the insurer's obligation to
compensate the broker-agent exceed three years after termination of
the broker-agent's contract, unless otherwise provided by terms of
the contract. The renewal shall be at the insurer's premium rates in
effect on the date of renewal and at prevailing commission rates for
that class or line of business in effect on the date of renewal for
broker-agents whose contracts are not terminated. An insurer shall
not be precluded from paying a commission to a terminated
broker-agent pursuant to this section at a level the insurer is
paying at the time it provides notice to the broker-agent that it is
terminating the contract or as set forth in the written agreement,
providing that there has not been any unilateral change in the
commission paid by the insurer within 180 days of the notice of the
broker-agent's termination. An insurer shall be allowed to subtract
from the three-year time period provided to a broker-agent upon
termination, the time period that elapsed during which the
broker-agent is involved in a rehabilitation program with an insurer.
(e) (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, no
insurer shall be required to renew any policy of insurance or
compensate a terminated broker-agent pursuant to the provisions of
this section if any of the following apply:
(A) The broker-agent is no longer the broker-agent of record with
respect to the policy, or the broker-agent has transferred ownership,
control, or servicing of policies written with the insurer to
another insurer or an entity owned or controlled, directly or
indirectly, by another insurer or to an entity owning or controlling,
directly or indirectly, another insurer.
(B) The broker-agent has died or has become unable to conduct his
or her business affairs.
(C) The broker-agent has failed, either within 10 days after
written demand upon failure to remit funds within the time limits set
forth in the agency or brokerage contract or within 30 days after
written demand if the agency or brokerage contract does not set forth
time limits, to remit funds due and owing to the insurer.
(D) The broker-agent has failed to follow the written instructions
of the insurer, a copy of which has been provided to the
broker-agent, generally applicable to the renewal of policies.
(E) The commissioner has determined that the renewal of the policy
would threaten the solvency of the insurer.
(F) The insurer suffers the withdrawal of reinsurance covering all
or part of the risk and this withdrawal of reinsurance is likely to
threaten, in the opinion of the commissioner, the financial integrity
or solvency of the insurer.
(G) The insurer has withdrawn from the State of California in
accordance with Sections 1070 to 1076, inclusive.
(2) Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to authorize
the nonrenewal of a good driver discount policy as defined and issued
pursuant to the provisions of Sections 1861.02, 1861.025, and
1861.03.
(f) This section shall not apply to a life insurer, an agent of a
life insurer, a disability insurer, a nonprofit hospital service
plan, an agent of a disability insurer or nonprofit hospital service
plan, an agent who is the employee of an insurer, or to an agent who,
by contractual agreement either represents only one insurer or group
of affiliated insurers or who is required by contract to submit
risks to a specified insurer or group of affiliated insurers prior to
submitting them to other insurers.
(g) This section does not apply to any management contract of a
managing general agent as defined in Section 1735, but it shall
continue to apply to any agency or brokerage contract of a managing
general agent or any portion of a management contract authorizing a
managing general agent to act in his or her capacity as an insurance
agent as defined in Section 1621, or an insurance broker as defined
in Section 1623.
(h) (1) For purposes of this section, a "rehabilitation program"
shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:
(A) Written communication to the broker-agent outlining the fact
that the broker-agent is on rehabilitation status.
(B) Identification by the company of problem areas.
(C) Mutual agreement on performance objectives and specific dates
for accomplishment.
(D) Length of rehabilitation plan to be negotiated, but not less
than six months.
(2) For purposes of subdivision (d), a good faith effort is
satisfied by a terminated broker-agent who markets his or her book of
business to other insurers that underwrite the same or similar lines
of insurance, consistent with the interests of the policyholders. An
insurer who terminates a broker-agent shall be entitled to be
informed of the marketing activity and to obtain copies of any
correspondence reflecting these efforts. However, nothing in this
section shall be interpreted to allow the insurer to require the
terminated broker-agent to obtain written rejections of an agency
appointment from other insurers, or written rejections from
individual policyholders.
(i) An insurer that takes action, other than terminating the
written agency or brokerage contract, solely for the purpose of
avoiding the provisions of subdivision (a) shall be required to
extend existing policies pursuant to the applicable provision of
subdivision (d) if both of the following apply:
(1) The action is designed to impact only a specific agency or
agencies and the business produced by them.
(2) The action results in the cancellation or nonrenewal of
substantially all of the agency's or agencies' business.
(j) This section shall apply to written agency contracts becoming
effective on or after January 1, 1987. The amendments to this section
by the act adding this sentence also apply to any written agency
contract amended after January 1, 1988.
(k) The amendments to this section made by the act adding this
subdivision shall apply to any written brokerage contract becoming
effective, or amended, on or after January 1, 1996.
769.2. (a) In determining the amount of an insurer's rollback
obligation pursuant to Section 1861.01 or any regulations promulgated
to implement this section, each insurer shall be given full credit
for all premium taxes, commissions, and brokerage expenses that the
insurer actually paid during the rollback period. No insurer shall be
required or permitted to seek, directly or indirectly, reimbursement
from the state of any premium taxes paid on premiums earned during
the rollback period or reimbursement from any employee or third-party
contractor of an insurer of any compensation paid to them for
services rendered during the rollback period.
(b) The provisions of this section and the findings and
declarations in support thereof take effect immediately upon
enactment and apply to any order, settlement agreement, consent
decree, or any other resolution of an insurer's rollback obligation
pursuant to Section 1861.01 that occurs after the effective date of
this section.
(c) Nothing in this section shall be deemed in any regulatory or
judicial proceeding or for any other purpose to constitute
legislative intent to endorse or approve any regulations on the issue
of Proposition 103 rollback refunds.
769.55. Notwithstanding any other provision of this code, for the
purposes of Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 520) through Chapter
11 (commencing with Section 675), inclusive of Part 1 of Division 1,
the obligation of an insurer to furnish any notice to its insured
required by law may be carried out by an insurer's general agent,
provided, however, that an insurer's delegation of a notice
obligation to a general agent shall not limit or negate the insurer's
responsibility or liability if the general agent fails to provide
the required notice.
As used in this section, "general agent" means a licensed fire and
casualty broker-agent who, pursuant to a written contract with an
admitted insurer manages the transaction of one or more classes of
insurance written by the insurer and has the power to (1) appoint,
supervise, and terminate local agents, (2) accept or decline risks,
and (3) collect premium moneys from producing broker-agents.
Nothing in this section shall provide an exemption from Article
5.4 (commencing with Section 769.80) to any fire and casualty
broker-agent who is otherwise subject to that article.
769. (a) After a written agency or written brokerage contract,
where the broker-agent represents the insurer, has been in effect for
at least one year, it shall not be terminated or amended by an
insurer, except by mutual agreement, unless 120 days' advance written
notice has been given by the insurer to the broker-agent.
(b) The advance notice required by this section does not apply if
the broker-agent has done any of the following:
(1) Exceeded his or her binding authority under the agency or
brokerage contract.
(2) Violated the written underwriting rules or regulations of the
insurer, a copy of which has been provided to the broker-agent, which
misleads the insurer concerning the nature or extent of a risk.
(3) Failed to comply with the fiduciary requirements set forth in
Section 1733, 1734, 1734.5, or 1735.
(4) Failed, either within 10 days after written notice upon
failure to remit funds within the time limits set forth in the agency
or brokerage contract or within 30 days after written demand if the
agency or brokerage contract does not set forth time limits, to remit
funds due and owing to the insurer.
(5) Had his or her license suspended or revoked by the
commissioner.
(6) Engaged in fraudulent acts affecting his or her relationship
with the insurer or its insureds.
(7) Transferred ownership, control, or servicing of policies
written with the insurer to another insurer, or to an entity directly
or indirectly owned or controlled by an insurer or to an entity
directly or indirectly owning or controlling an insurer.
(c) When a broker-agent's contract is terminated as provided by
this section, the rights, duties, and obligations set forth in the
terminated contract of the broker-agent having property rights in
renewals shall continue solely with respect to policies then in force
or renewed as provided by this section until those policies are
canceled in accordance with law, placed by the broker-agent with
another insurer, or have expired. The broker-agent's authority during
the period following notice of termination of his or her contract
shall be governed by the written contract between the broker-agent
and the insurer, except that, after the receipt of the notice of
termination, the broker-agent shall not bind new risks on behalf of
the insurer, renew policies except as permitted by this section, or
otherwise increase the obligation of the insurer, without the express
approval of the insurer or in accordance with the terms of an
existing policy.
(d) If a terminated broker-agent is unable, after making a good
faith effort, to place existing policies with another insurer, the
insurer then insuring the risk shall, at the broker-agent's request,
renew any insurance contract written by the broker-agent for the
insurer for one policy term or a period of one year, whichever is
shorter. Where the insurer is prohibited by subdivision (c) of
Section 1861.03 from nonrenewing the risk, the insurer shall continue
to compensate the broker-agent for servicing the policies written by
the insurer prior to termination of the broker-agent relationship
until the insurer can cancel or nonrenew the policyholder pursuant to
statute or the broker-agent moves the policyholder to another
insurer but, in no event, shall the insurer's obligation to
compensate the broker-agent exceed three years after termination of
the broker-agent's contract, unless otherwise provided by terms of
the contract. The renewal shall be at the insurer's premium rates in
effect on the date of renewal and at prevailing commission rates for
that class or line of business in effect on the date of renewal for
broker-agents whose contracts are not terminated. An insurer shall
not be precluded from paying a commission to a terminated
broker-agent pursuant to this section at a level the insurer is
paying at the time it provides notice to the broker-agent that it is
terminating the contract or as set forth in the written agreement,
providing that there has not been any unilateral change in the
commission paid by the insurer within 180 days of the notice of the
broker-agent's termination. An insurer shall be allowed to subtract
from the three-year time period provided to a broker-agent upon
termination, the time period that elapsed during which the
broker-agent is involved in a rehabilitation program with an insurer.
(e) (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, no
insurer shall be required to renew any policy of insurance or
compensate a terminated broker-agent pursuant to the provisions of
this section if any of the following apply:
(A) The broker-agent is no longer the broker-agent of record with
respect to the policy, or the broker-agent has transferred ownership,
control, or servicing of policies written with the insurer to
another insurer or an entity owned or controlled, directly or
indirectly, by another insurer or to an entity owning or controlling,
directly or indirectly, another insurer.
(B) The broker-agent has died or has become unable to conduct his
or her business affairs.
(C) The broker-agent has failed, either within 10 days after
written demand upon failure to remit funds within the time limits set
forth in the agency or brokerage contract or within 30 days after
written demand if the agency or brokerage contract does not set forth
time limits, to remit funds due and owing to the insurer.
(D) The broker-agent has failed to follow the written instructions
of the insurer, a copy of which has been provided to the
broker-agent, generally applicable to the renewal of policies.
(E) The commissioner has determined that the renewal of the policy
would threaten the solvency of the insurer.
(F) The insurer suffers the withdrawal of reinsurance covering all
or part of the risk and this withdrawal of reinsurance is likely to
threaten, in the opinion of the commissioner, the financial integrity
or solvency of the insurer.
(G) The insurer has withdrawn from the State of California in
accordance with Sections 1070 to 1076, inclusive.
(2) Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to authorize
the nonrenewal of a good driver discount policy as defined and issued
pursuant to the provisions of Sections 1861.02, 1861.025, and
1861.03.
(f) This section shall not apply to a life insurer, an agent of a
life insurer, a disability insurer, a nonprofit hospital service
plan, an agent of a disability insurer or nonprofit hospital service
plan, an agent who is the employee of an insurer, or to an agent who,
by contractual agreement either represents only one insurer or group
of affiliated insurers or who is required by contract to submit
risks to a specified insurer or group of affiliated insurers prior to
submitting them to other insurers.
(g) This section does not apply to any management contract of a
managing general agent as defined in Section 1735, but it shall
continue to apply to any agency or brokerage contract of a managing
general agent or any portion of a management contract authorizing a
managing general agent to act in his or her capacity as an insurance
agent as defined in Section 1621, or an insurance broker as defined
in Section 1623.
(h) (1) For purposes of this section, a "rehabilitation program"
shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:
(A) Written communication to the broker-agent outlining the fact
that the broker-agent is on rehabilitation status.
(B) Identification by the company of problem areas.
(C) Mutual agreement on performance objectives and specific dates
for accomplishment.
(D) Length of rehabilitation plan to be negotiated, but not less
than six months.
(2) For purposes of subdivision (d), a good faith effort is
satisfied by a terminated broker-agent who markets his or her book of
business to other insurers that underwrite the same or similar lines
of insurance, consistent with the interests of the policyholders. An
insurer who terminates a broker-agent shall be entitled to be
informed of the marketing activity and to obtain copies of any
correspondence reflecting these efforts. However, nothing in this
section shall be interpreted to allow the insurer to require the
terminated broker-agent to obtain written rejections of an agency
appointment from other insurers, or written rejections from
individual policyholders.
(i) An insurer that takes action, other than terminating the
written agency or brokerage contract, solely for the purpose of
avoiding the provisions of subdivision (a) shall be required to
extend existing policies pursuant to the applicable provision of
subdivision (d) if both of the following apply:
(1) The action is designed to impact only a specific agency or
agencies and the business produced by them.
(2) The action results in the cancellation or nonrenewal of
substantially all of the agency's or agencies' business.
(j) This section shall apply to written agency contracts becoming
effective on or after January 1, 1987. The amendments to this section
by the act adding this sentence also apply to any written agency
contract amended after January 1, 1988.
(k) The amendments to this section made by the act adding this
subdivision shall apply to any written brokerage contract becoming
effective, or amended, on or after January 1, 1996.
769.2. (a) In determining the amount of an insurer's rollback
obligation pursuant to Section 1861.01 or any regulations promulgated
to implement this section, each insurer shall be given full credit
for all premium taxes, commissions, and brokerage expenses that the
insurer actually paid during the rollback period. No insurer shall be
required or permitted to seek, directly or indirectly, reimbursement
from the state of any premium taxes paid on premiums earned during
the rollback period or reimbursement from any employee or third-party
contractor of an insurer of any compensation paid to them for
services rendered during the rollback period.
(b) The provisions of this section and the findings and
declarations in support thereof take effect immediately upon
enactment and apply to any order, settlement agreement, consent
decree, or any other resolution of an insurer's rollback obligation
pursuant to Section 1861.01 that occurs after the effective date of
this section.
(c) Nothing in this section shall be deemed in any regulatory or
judicial proceeding or for any other purpose to constitute
legislative intent to endorse or approve any regulations on the issue
of Proposition 103 rollback refunds.
769.55. Notwithstanding any other provision of this code, for the
purposes of Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 520) through Chapter
11 (commencing with Section 675), inclusive of Part 1 of Division 1,
the obligation of an insurer to furnish any notice to its insured
required by law may be carried out by an insurer's general agent,
provided, however, that an insurer's delegation of a notice
obligation to a general agent shall not limit or negate the insurer's
responsibility or liability if the general agent fails to provide
the required notice.
As used in this section, "general agent" means a licensed fire and
casualty broker-agent who, pursuant to a written contract with an
admitted insurer manages the transaction of one or more classes of
insurance written by the insurer and has the power to (1) appoint,
supervise, and terminate local agents, (2) accept or decline risks,
and (3) collect premium moneys from producing broker-agents.
Nothing in this section shall provide an exemption from Article
5.4 (commencing with Section 769.80) to any fire and casualty
broker-agent who is otherwise subject to that article.
769. (a) After a written agency or written brokerage contract,
where the broker-agent represents the insurer, has been in effect for
at least one year, it shall not be terminated or amended by an
insurer, except by mutual agreement, unless 120 days' advance written
notice has been given by the insurer to the broker-agent.
(b) The advance notice required by this section does not apply if
the broker-agent has done any of the following:
(1) Exceeded his or her binding authority under the agency or
brokerage contract.
(2) Violated the written underwriting rules or regulations of the
insurer, a copy of which has been provided to the broker-agent, which
misleads the insurer concerning the nature or extent of a risk.
(3) Failed to comply with the fiduciary requirements set forth in
Section 1733, 1734, 1734.5, or 1735.
(4) Failed, either within 10 days after written notice upon
failure to remit funds within the time limits set forth in the agency
or brokerage contract or within 30 days after written demand if the
agency or brokerage contract does not set forth time limits, to remit
funds due and owing to the insurer.
(5) Had his or her license suspended or revoked by the
commissioner.
(6) Engaged in fraudulent acts affecting his or her relationship
with the insurer or its insureds.
(7) Transferred ownership, control, or servicing of policies
written with the insurer to another insurer, or to an entity directly
or indirectly owned or controlled by an insurer or to an entity
directly or indirectly owning or controlling an insurer.
(c) When a broker-agent's contract is terminated as provided by
this section, the rights, duties, and obligations set forth in the
terminated contract of the broker-agent having property rights in
renewals shall continue solely with respect to policies then in force
or renewed as provided by this section until those policies are
canceled in accordance with law, placed by the broker-agent with
another insurer, or have expired. The broker-agent's authority during
the period following notice of termination of his or her contract
shall be governed by the written contract between the broker-agent
and the insurer, except that, after the receipt of the notice of
termination, the broker-agent shall not bind new risks on behalf of
the insurer, renew policies except as permitted by this section, or
otherwise increase the obligation of the insurer, without the express
approval of the insurer or in accordance with the terms of an
existing policy.
(d) If a terminated broker-agent is unable, after making a good
faith effort, to place existing policies with another insurer, the
insurer then insuring the risk shall, at the broker-agent's request,
renew any insurance contract written by the broker-agent for the
insurer for one policy term or a period of one year, whichever is
shorter. Where the insurer is prohibited by subdivision (c) of
Section 1861.03 from nonrenewing the risk, the insurer shall continue
to compensate the broker-agent for servicing the policies written by
the insurer prior to termination of the broker-agent relationship
until the insurer can cancel or nonrenew the policyholder pursuant to
statute or the broker-agent moves the policyholder to another
insurer but, in no event, shall the insurer's obligation to
compensate the broker-agent exceed three years after termination of
the broker-agent's contract, unless otherwise provided by terms of
the contract. The renewal shall be at the insurer's premium rates in
effect on the date of renewal and at prevailing commission rates for
that class or line of business in effect on the date of renewal for
broker-agents whose contracts are not terminated. An insurer shall
not be precluded from paying a commission to a terminated
broker-agent pursuant to this section at a level the insurer is
paying at the time it provides notice to the broker-agent that it is
terminating the contract or as set forth in the written agreement,
providing that there has not been any unilateral change in the
commission paid by the insurer within 180 days of the notice of the
broker-agent's termination. An insurer shall be allowed to subtract
from the three-year time period provided to a broker-agent upon
termination, the time period that elapsed during which the
broker-agent is involved in a rehabilitation program with an insurer.
(e) (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, no
insurer shall be required to renew any policy of insurance or
compensate a terminated broker-agent pursuant to the provisions of
this section if any of the following apply:
(A) The broker-agent is no longer the broker-agent of record with
respect to the policy, or the broker-agent has transferred ownership,
control, or servicing of policies written with the insurer to
another insurer or an entity owned or controlled, directly or
indirectly, by another insurer or to an entity owning or controlling,
directly or indirectly, another insurer.
(B) The broker-agent has died or has become unable to conduct his
or her business affairs.
(C) The broker-agent has failed, either within 10 days after
written demand upon failure to remit funds within the time limits set
forth in the agency or brokerage contract or within 30 days after
written demand if the agency or brokerage contract does not set forth
time limits, to remit funds due and owing to the insurer.
(D) The broker-agent has failed to follow the written instructions
of the insurer, a copy of which has been provided to the
broker-agent, generally applicable to the renewal of policies.
(E) The commissioner has determined that the renewal of the policy
would threaten the solvency of the insurer.
(F) The insurer suffers the withdrawal of reinsurance covering all
or part of the risk and this withdrawal of reinsurance is likely to
threaten, in the opinion of the commissioner, the financial integrity
or solvency of the insurer.
(G) The insurer has withdrawn from the State of California in
accordance with Sections 1070 to 1076, inclusive.
(2) Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to authorize
the nonrenewal of a good driver discount policy as defined and issued
pursuant to the provisions of Sections 1861.02, 1861.025, and
1861.03.
(f) This section shall not apply to a life insurer, an agent of a
life insurer, a disability insurer, a nonprofit hospital service
plan, an agent of a disability insurer or nonprofit hospital service
plan, an agent who is the employee of an insurer, or to an agent who,
by contractual agreement either represents only one insurer or group
of affiliated insurers or who is required by contract to submit
risks to a specified insurer or group of affiliated insurers prior to
submitting them to other insurers.
(g) This section does not apply to any management contract of a
managing general agent as defined in Section 1735, but it shall
continue to apply to any agency or brokerage contract of a managing
general agent or any portion of a management contract authorizing a
managing general agent to act in his or her capacity as an insurance
agent as defined in Section 1621, or an insurance broker as defined
in Section 1623.
(h) (1) For purposes of this section, a "rehabilitation program"
shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:
(A) Written communication to the broker-agent outlining the fact
that the broker-agent is on rehabilitation status.
(B) Identification by the company of problem areas.
(C) Mutual agreement on performance objectives and specific dates
for accomplishment.
(D) Length of rehabilitation plan to be negotiated, but not less
than six months.
(2) For purposes of subdivision (d), a good faith effort is
satisfied by a terminated broker-agent who markets his or her book of
business to other insurers that underwrite the same or similar lines
of insurance, consistent with the interests of the policyholders. An
insurer who terminates a broker-agent shall be entitled to be
informed of the marketing activity and to obtain copies of any
correspondence reflecting these efforts. However, nothing in this
section shall be interpreted to allow the insurer to require the
terminated broker-agent to obtain written rejections of an agency
appointment from other insurers, or written rejections from
individual policyholders.
(i) An insurer that takes action, other than terminating the
written agency or brokerage contract, solely for the purpose of
avoiding the provisions of subdivision (a) shall be required to
extend existing policies pursuant to the applicable provision of
subdivision (d) if both of the following apply:
(1) The action is designed to impact only a specific agency or
agencies and the business produced by them.
(2) The action results in the cancellation or nonrenewal of
substantially all of the agency's or agencies' business.
(j) This section shall apply to written agency contracts becoming
effective on or after January 1, 1987. The amendments to this section
by the act adding this sentence also apply to any written agency
contract amended after January 1, 1988.
(k) The amendments to this section made by the act adding this
subdivision shall apply to any written brokerage contract becoming
effective, or amended, on or after January 1, 1996.
769.2. (a) In determining the amount of an insurer's rollback
obligation pursuant to Section 1861.01 or any regulations promulgated
to implement this section, each insurer shall be given full credit
for all premium taxes, commissions, and brokerage expenses that the
insurer actually paid during the rollback period. No insurer shall be
required or permitted to seek, directly or indirectly, reimbursement
from the state of any premium taxes paid on premiums earned during
the rollback period or reimbursement from any employee or third-party
contractor of an insurer of any compensation paid to them for
services rendered during the rollback period.
(b) The provisions of this section and the findings and
declarations in support thereof take effect immediately upon
enactment and apply to any order, settlement agreement, consent
decree, or any other resolution of an insurer's rollback obligation
pursuant to Section 1861.01 that occurs after the effective date of
this section.
(c) Nothing in this section shall be deemed in any regulatory or
judicial proceeding or for any other purpose to constitute
legislative intent to endorse or approve any regulations on the issue
of Proposition 103 rollback refunds.
769.55. Notwithstanding any other provision of this code, for the
purposes of Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 520) through Chapter
11 (commencing with Section 675), inclusive of Part 1 of Division 1,
the obligation of an insurer to furnish any notice to its insured
required by law may be carried out by an insurer's general agent,
provided, however, that an insurer's delegation of a notice
obligation to a general agent shall not limit or negate the insurer's
responsibility or liability if the general agent fails to provide
the required notice.
As used in this section, "general agent" means a licensed fire and
casualty broker-agent who, pursuant to a written contract with an
admitted insurer manages the transaction of one or more classes of
insurance written by the insurer and has the power to (1) appoint,
supervise, and terminate local agents, (2) accept or decline risks,
and (3) collect premium moneys from producing broker-agents.
Nothing in this section shall provide an exemption from Article
5.4 (commencing with Section 769.80) to any fire and casualty
broker-agent who is otherwise subject to that article.
