NIMA States Agree on Taxation, Allocation Issues; Surplus Lines Clearinghouse Training Webinars Scheduled

 

The Florida Surplus Lines Service Office (“FSLSO”) announced that the Nonadmitted Insurance Multi-State Agreement (“NIMA”) states met on June 5, 2012 and came to agreement on the following major issues:

• Taxation of Non-U.S. Premium:  The NIMA states decided that they will not collect surplus lines taxes on premium allocated to a risk outside of the United States and its territories.  Furthermore, the reporting of non-U.S. premium to the Surplus Lines Clearinghouse (“Clearinghouse”) is optional and may be done so at the discretion of the broker.  The Clearinghouse filing platform (also known as the Surplus Lines Information Portal or “SLIP”) and Multi-State Tax Calculator on the Surplus Lines Clearinghouse Website have been updated to reflect this change. 

• Application of the NIMA Exposure Allocation Methodology:  The NIMA states determined that the NIMA Exposure Allocation Methodology should be utilized for all multi-state policies for which the Home State of the insured is a NIMA participating state and are quoted on or after July 1, 2012.  Policies quoted prior to July 1, 2012 may use either the previous NIMA allocation method or the rating basis used prior to the adoption of the NIMA Exposure Allocation Methodology.  A copy of the NIMA Exposure Allocation Methodology is attached to this email.    

• Single-State Risk Endorsed to Become a Multi-State Risk:  The NIMA states concluded that, when a policy becomes effective, if there is premium exposure in only one state it is defined as a single-state risk and would not be filed through the Clearinghouse.  However, if the policy is later endorsed to add a location in another state or jurisdiction making it a multi-state policy, the endorsements will continue to be filed directly with the state (not through the Clearinghouse) until the policy renews.  If at renewal the policy is a multi-state risk, then the renewal transaction would be filed through the Clearinghouse.  

Surplus Lines Clearinghouse Training Webinars Scheduled

The Clearinghouse has scheduled a series of Webinars during June and July 2012 designed to provide brokers with general information, as well as training on the Surplus Lines Information Portal platform.

To register for the Webinars, go to www.slclearinghouse.com or click on the hyperlinks below:

• June 20: Introducing the Surplus Lines Clearinghouse, Common Questions and Scenarios
• June 27: Policy Filing With the Surplus Lines Clearinghouse

Also in June, the Clearinghouse will release a video tutorial series on how to use the SLIP to complete policy filings.

Additional information is included in the Clearinghouse news release, which is reprinted below.

 

Clearinghouse and SLIP Training Webinars Now Available for Registration

Tallahassee, FL. – With less than 30 days until its scheduled release date, the Surplus Lines Clearinghouse will be hosting various training efforts throughout the month of June in order to prepare the broker community for the implementation of the Surplus Lines Information Portal (SLIP).

“Education and training are key components in assisting brokers and policy filers to make a smooth transition to an electronic filing system,” stated Clearinghouse Manager, Tiffany Maruniak. “We encourage all filers, particularly those not familiar with the SLIP filing platform, to use these available resources.”

A series of industry webinars is in the works with two offerings already set for the latter part of June. “An Introduction to the Surplus Lines Clearinghouse” will cover the services, functions and departments of the Surplus Lines Clearinghouse. Additionally, it will provide a basic outline of the policy filing and payment process, as well as a review of common filing scenarios and frequently asked questions. This webinar will be hosted on June 20th.

For those needing to know more about the SLIP filing platform, “An Introduction to SLIP’s Electronic Filing Process” airing June 27th will serve as a useful guide or electronic policy filing. Subsequent airings of this webinar will also be scheduled throughout July.

Registration for both of these webinars is now available on the Clearinghouse website at www.slclearinghouse.com.

In addition to webinars, the Clearinghouse will provide an extensive video library of filing tutorials along with a Reporting Entities manual and updated FAQs. All of these resources along with future training dates will be made available on the Clearinghouse website prior to the July 1 filing start date.

The Surplus Lines Clearinghouse is a service of the Florida Surplus Lines Service Office. The Surplus Lines Clearinghouse is contracted by NIMA, Inc. to provide software and operational support to the participating states of the Nonadmitted Insurance Multi-State Agreement (NIMA).

 

Should you have any questions or comments, please contact Colodny Fass.

 

 

 

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