§ 36-4055.8 — Disclosures to viator.

Oklahoma § 36-4055.8

• Jurisdiction: Oklahoma
• Title 36: Insurance

Text

A. With each application for a viatical settlement, a viatical settlement provider or viatical settlement broker shall provide the viator with at least the following disclosures no later than the time the application for the viatical settlement contract is signed by all parties. The disclosures shall be provided in a separate document that is signed by the viator and the viatical settlement provider or viatical settlement broker, and shall provide the following information: 1. There are possible alternatives to viatical settlement contracts including any accelerated death benefits or policy loans offered under the viator’s life insurance policy; 2. That a viatical settlement broker represents exclusively the viator, and not the insurer or the viatical settlement provider, and owes a fiduciary duty to the viator, including a duty to act according to the viator’s instructions and in the best interest of the viator; 3. Some or all of the proceeds of the viatical settlement may be taxable under federal income tax and state franchise and income taxes, and assistance should be sought from a professional tax advisor; 4. Proceeds of the viatical settlement could be subject to the claims of creditors; 5. Receipt of the proceeds of a viatical settlement may adversely affect the viator’s eligibility for Medicaid or other government benefits or entitlements, and advice should be obtained from the appropriate government agencies; 6. The viator has the right to rescind a viatical settlement contract before the earlier of thirty (30) calendar days after the date upon which the viatical settlement contract is executed by all parties or fifteen (15) calendar days after the viatical settlement proceeds have been paid to the viator. Rescission, if exercised by the viator, is effective only if both notice of the rescission is given, and the viator repays all proceeds and any premiums, loans and loan interest paid on account of the viatical settlement within the rescission period. If the insured dies during the rescission period, the viatical settlement contract shall be deemed to have been rescinded, subject to repayment by the viator or the viator’s estate of all viatical settlement proceeds and any premiums, loans and loan interest on the viatical settlement within sixty (60) days of the insured’s death; 7. Funds will be sent to the viator within three (3) business days after the viatical settlement provider has received the insurer’s or group administrator’s written acknowledgment that ownership of the policy or interest in the certificate has been transferred and the beneficiary has been designated; 8. Entering into a viatical settlement contract may cause other rights or benefits, including conversion rights and waiver of premium benefits that may exist under the policy or certificate, to be forfeited by the viator. Assistance should be sought from a financial adviser; 9. Disclosure to a viator shall include distribution of a brochure describing the process of viatical settlements. The National Association of Insurance Commissioner’s (NAIC’s) form for the brochure shall be used unless another form is developed or approved by the Insurance Commissioner; 10. The disclosure document shall contain the following language: “All medical, financial or personal information solicited or obtained by a viatical settlement provider or viatical settlement broker about an insured, including the insured’s identity or the identity of family members, a spouse or a significant other may be disclosed as necessary to effect the viatical settlement between the viator and the viatical settlement provider. If you are asked to provide this information, you will be asked to consent to the disclosure. The information may be provided to someone who buys the policy or provides funds for the purchase. You may be asked to renew your permission to share information every two (2) years.”; and 11. Following execution of a viatical contract, the insured may be contacted for the purpose of determining the insured’s health status and to confirm the insured’s residential or business street address and telephone number, or as otherwise provided in the Viatical Settlements Act of 2008. This contact shall be limited to once every three (3) months if the insured has a life expectancy of more than one (1) year, and no more than once per month if the insured has a life expectancy of one (1) year or less. All such contacts shall be made only by a viatical settlement provider licensed in the state in which the viator resided at the time of the viatical settlement, or by the authorized representative of a duly licensed viatical settlement provider. B. A viatical settlement provider shall provide the viator with at least the following disclosures no later than the date the viatical settlement contract is signed by all parties. The disclosures shall be conspicuously displayed in the viatical settlement contract or in a separate document signed by the viator and provide the following information: 1. The affiliation, if any, between the viatical settlement provider and the issuer of the insurance policy to be viaticated; 2. The document shall include the name, business address and telephone number of the viatical settlement provider; 3. Any affiliations or contractual arrangements between the viatical settlement provider and the viatical settlement purchaser; 4. If an insurance policy to be viaticated has been issued as a joint policy or involves family riders or any coverage of a life other than the insured under the policy to be viaticated, the viator shall be informed of the possible loss of coverage on the other lives under the policy and shall be advised to consult with his or her insurance producer or the insurer issuing the policy for advice on the proposed viatical settlement; 5. State the dollar amount of the current death benefit payable to the viatical settlement provider under the policy or certificate. If known, the viatical settlement provider shall also disclose the availability of any additional guaranteed insurance benefits, the dollar amount of any accidental death and dismemberment benefits under the policy or certificate and the extent to which the viator’s interest in those benefits will be transferred as a result of the viatical settlement contract; and 6. State whether the funds will be escrowed with an independent third party during the transfer process, and if so, provide the name, business address, and telephone number of the independent third-party escrow agent, and the fact that the viator or owner may inspect or receive copies of the relevant escrow or trust agreements or documents. C. A viatical settlement broker shall provide the viator with at least the following disclosures no later than the date the viatical settlement contract is signed by all parties. The disclosures shall be conspicuously displayed in the viatical settlement contract or in a separate document signed by the viator and provide the following information: 1. The name, business address and telephone number of the viatical settlement broker; 2. A full, complete and accurate description of all offers, counter-offers, acceptances and rejections relating to the proposed viatical settlement contract; and 3. A written disclosure of any affiliations or contractual arrangements between the viatical settlement broker and any person making an offer in connection with the proposed viatical settlement contracts. D. If the viatical settlement provider transfers ownership or changes the beneficiary of the insurance policy, the provider shall communicate in writing the change in ownership or beneficiary to the insured within twenty (20) days after the change. E. A viatical settlement provider or its viatical settlement investment agent shall provide the viatical settlement purchaser with at least the following disclosures no later than at the time of the assignment, transfer or sale of all or a portion of an insurance policy. The disclosures shall be contained in a document signed by the viatical settlement purchaser and viatical settlement provider or viatical settlement investment agent, and shall make the following disclosures to the viatical settlement purchaser: 1. Disclose all the life expectancy certifications obtained by the provider in the process of determining the price paid to the viator; 2. State whether premium payments or other costs related to the policy have been escrowed. If escrowed, state the date upon which the escrowed funds will be depleted and whether the purchaser will be responsible for payment of premiums thereafter and, if so, the amount of the premiums; 3. State whether premium payments or other costs related to the policy have been waived. If waived, disclose whether the investor will be responsible for payment of the premiums if the insurer that wrote the policy terminates the waiver after purchase and the amount of those premiums; 4. Disclose the type of policy offered or sold, i.e., whole life, term life, universal life or a group policy certificate, any additional benefits contained in the policy, and the current status of the policy; 5. If the policy is term insurance, disclose the special risks associated with term insurance including, but not limited to, the purchaser’s responsibility for additional premiums if the viator continues the term policy at the end of the current term; 6. State whether the policy is contestable; 7. State whether the insurer that wrote the policy has any additional rights that could negatively affect or extinguish the purchaser’s rights under the viatical settlement contract, what these rights are, and under what conditions these rights are activated; and 8. State the name and address of the person responsible for monitoring the insured’s condition. Describe how often the monitoring of the insured’s condition is done, how the date of death is determined, and how and when this information will be transmitted to the purchaser.

Legislative History

Added by Laws 2008, c. 183, § 8, eff. Nov. 1, 2008. Amended by Laws 2008, c. 344, § 5, eff. Nov. 1, 2008.