Insurer Group Mostly Happy with Missouri Legislative Session

The Missouri General Assembly has passed several industry-supported insurance-related bills this year.

One measure, SB 322, makes it easier for consumers to access their insurance policy, according to the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI). Another, SB 1, contains reforms that address the state’s ailing Second Injury Fund. Also approved was HB 339, which prohibits recovery of non-economic damages by those who have been injured in an automobile accident but whom themselves do not have auto insurance.

SB 322 allows consumers to use electronic devices to show evidence of insurance, and permits property/casualty insurers to post a consumer’s policy online and send a link via email to the policyholder in lieu of providing a hard copy.

SB 1 limits the types of claims that can be run through the Second Injury Fund and the amount that can be recovered. It also clarifies that the workers’ comp system is the exclusive remedy for the majority of occupational diseases, except for mesothelioma. For claims involving mesothelioma, employers will be able to choose coverage through the workers’ compensation system; use a special risk pool; or handle the case through the standard litigation process.

The legislation provides that the Second Injury Fund shall impose a supplemental surcharge not to exceed 3 percent of net premiums from 2014 to 2021, in order to maintain the fiscal solvency of the fund.

SB 1 also allows greater flexibility in rating by allowing the use of individual risk premium modification rating plans, according to PCI.

HB 339, which PCI supported, bars uninsured motorists from collecting for pain and suffering from insured drivers.

PCI expressed disappointment, however, that HB 90, which addressed a procedure used in virtually every other state called reservation of rights, did not advance. In Missouri it is difficult to use a reservation of rights and still provide a defense to the insured without the fear of a bad faith type of allegation, according to PCI. The bill would have allowed an insurance company to reserve its rights until it determines if there is coverage or not, as is permissible in the rest of the country, PCI said.

Topics Carriers Missouri