U.S. has a well-developed system of property and personal insurance. The private sector of the economy and high standard of living of American citizens cause the traditionally high demand for all types of insurance services in the country. It is believed that insurance is not only part of the U.S. economy, the insurance policy is a necessary condition of the American dream. Insurance of motor transport and aviagrazhdanskoy liability has become imperative for the citizens, as the car the most common (and sometimes only) means of transportation.
Stable functioning of the insurance industry provided by the system and its regulation is a matter of peace and security of the nation to various risk factors.
Insurance - the most influential U.S. financial institutions - affect virtually every aspect of daily life in American society and, therefore, occupies a unique place in the economic system of the country. Unlike other financial institutions in the U.S. insurance refused to force the federal regulatory system, securing the appropriate authority of individual states. This model of regulation remains unchanged at 60-70-80 and subsequent years.
At the state level, formed a large infrastructure of regulation of the insurance industry, which throughout its history (150 years) has proved its viability and effectiveness.
Insurance - an important part of the economic system of any industrialized country, so to ensure the normal functioning of the market conditions related to important national priorities. The scale of the private insurance market depends on the extent to which the state provides social protection for its citizens. In the U.S., the private insurance sector provides the kinds of services that substitute for government social programs or supplementing them.
The insurance industry in the United States is the two markets - life insurance and other types of insurance. Other species - a property insurance, liability, accident, etc. This division is due to the economic characteristics of different types of insurance activities. Accordingly, different regulatory requirements and the requirements for the elimination of resource areas of investment, etc.
U.S. leader in terms of property and liability insurance - 46% of the global market. Financial assets of U.S. insurance companies for property and other types of insurance in 1993 totaled 637 billion U.S. dollars.
The U.S. insurance market is highly competitive - in the country, there are about 4 thousand life insurance companies, and 4.5 thousand in property insurance and liability. These are mainly small insurance companies registered in one state. But even the big insurance companies, registered in most states and operate on the national level, have only a few percent of the market for each type of insurance and can not affect prices.
Competition in the U.S. insurance market is largely due to the approach of the state to regulate the industry. The U.S. government is considering the competition as an essential mechanism to ensure a high level of supply and quality of insurance services. The criterion for access to the insurance market in most states are capital requirements. Competition is also connected with the growing penetration of the U.S. insurance market for foreign insurers.
The insurance industry - life insurance market is experiencing competitive pressure from financial institutions - banks and other financial institutions offering investment solutions, competing with some kinds of insurance services. Competition could intensify if the insurance market will be allowed banks. U.S. law restricts banks related operations.
Property insurance market is also experiencing significant competitive pressures. High interest rates, typical of the 80s. made short-term investments are very profitable and attracted into the industry a lot of new companies, which led to a price war. All companies have been forced to cut prices to stay in the insurance market. A few years later, when the insurance companies had to make payments on the contracts, investment income could not cover the forgone bonuses, and insurance services to this market grew substantially. Due to the fact that consumers were not able to purchase the required insurance coverage at an affordable price significant development of alternative methods of funding these types of risks, such as self-insurance, ie, refuse to purchase insurance. More significantly increase the size of retention in order to reduce the premiums paid. Another mechanism was the creation of captive insurance companies that insure risks or more parent companies. Regulation of the insurance industry aimed at protecting consumers and industry from the insolvency of insurance companies and to ensure the availability of insurance to anyone looking for insurance services and be able to obtain them at reasonable prices, on fair terms, regardless of place of residence, nationality and other factors.
In the state regulation are the following two areas: regulation of insurers' solvency and market regulation. The regulation includes solvency capital requirements, reserve funds, investments, and to provide financial statements and actions against the insolvent insurer. The State focuses on pricing, establishment of forms of insurance poles, insurance contracts, and Claims. Financial and nonfinancial aspects of regulation are closely linked: the regulation of insurance is inevitably reflected in their financial position (position) and the effect on prices and services offered by insurance companies. For optimal control of the state co-ordination in both directions, which provides significant challenges - regulatory objectives may contradict each other. The more stringent regulation will be to pay, the more it will affect the supply of and prices: the insurers will be forced to reduce services provided by insurance and raise premiums.
Many consumers in this situation can not get access to insurance at a reasonable price. High prices - this is not a guarantee of solvency of the insurer, but low or more attractive terms can be offered by insurance companies that carry more risky surgery. In this case, the risk of insolvency for them to be higher than for other insurance companies charge higher prices and prefer a more conservative investment strategy.
Decision-making, what goals are most important for the regulation of the public interest, it is extremely important for regulating the insurance industry. Considerable attention of regulators of the public questions were discriminatory practices by insurers M1ts for people with low income who have been in the black list of insurance companies. Residents of the 14 largest U.S. cities and the entire city blocks were deprived of their property insurance, or are forced to buy policies on less favorable terms than other paradisiacal conditions. Thus, the purpose of regulation in the U.S. insurance industry developed, and can vary substantially depending on the social and economic priorities. Reconcile the priorities of management and the interests of insurers - a difficult task, the search for compromises facing the state. The insurance industry, carrying out risk insurance and investing heavily, significantly affects the development of entire regions and reflects the country and, therefore, is an active force in American society.
The U.S. government, as noted above, does not have a federal system of regulating the insurance industry. It states in this area was carried out regulatory activities in this area. Their powers are stipulated by the Law McCarthy Ferguson (1945). The U.S. Congress plays the role of observer. Each state controls its territory and federal antitrust laws apply to insurance to the extent to which this activity is not covered by regular adjustment. The legislation puts the state authority to regulate insurance business in special organs. In most states, they are directly under the governor, and in fact are the ministries headed by appointed commissioner for the post. Only in some states, these units are headed by an elected person, and they do not obey the governor.
Insurance agencies in the states have the structure of licensing departments of insurance agents, licensing and inspection of insurance companies, life insurance policies, the policy of property and insurance rates, legal issues, etc. Insurance Commissioner has broad authority to regulate all aspects of insurance business, but must follow the administrative rules adopted in this state. Since the XIX century. Many insurance companies have conducted operations at the same time in different states, there was a need to coordinate regulatory activities. In 1871, for this purpose established the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (the Association), which included heads of state insurance authorities.
Association as the coordinator of regulatory activity serves nadshtatnogo body. The association develops uniform standards of regulation and model laws. Following the adoption of these laws at the national meeting of the Association are to be included in the state legislature (usually within two years). These decisions are advisory in nature, but the authority of the Association can carry out these decisions in life.
The Association provides a collective body of individual states and the maximum consideration of their interests in the exercise of any direction of regulation of the insurance business. At the same time the Association has successfully solves the problem of developing and implementing common standards, ensuring the integrity of the regulation.
In cases where the regulation at the state level can not be promptly addressed topical issues in the insurance industry, the latter becomes the subject of federal intervention.
An example is the federal law on hold at risk (1981, as amended in 1986). The law authorized the formation of any state risk retention groups - a form of insurance law or conduct insurance business in any state without a license or compliance with any regulatory requirements
Group retention risk have an alternative to traditional insurance in the midst of the crisis in the liability insurance market in the mid 80-ies The insurance company refused to provide coverage for certain types of risks or significantly increased the prices of their services. Act authorized the retention of the risk of acquiring the poles insurance groups of buyers. Wholesale buying has significantly reduced the size of premiums paid, which was previously prohibited by the laws 22 states.
Insurance in the United States may be registered as an insurance company for property or life insurance, and shall maintain insurance operations according to the profile.
The company must be licensed in the state, where she plans to carry out insurance operations. But through the redundancy of insurance, the insurer can operate in those states where it does not have a license. Excess insurance - insurance risks that can not be placed on the market and which require additional coverage. If the risk can not be insured to the company having a license, but extensions may be involved, and other insurers.
Are subject to regulation as a form of insurance policies. Before the introduction of them into circulation, they must be submitted for approval by the insurance authority of the state. The grounds for refusal could be a violation of the policy staff of the insurance law, the existence of conflicting articles within the meaning of, the existence of exceptions or conditions misleading with respect to the insured risk, etc. Approval and shall be attached to the policy additions.
Staffing and contract law imposes requirements for the standardization of forms used in the country of insurance policies, especially in the field of property insurance - insurance household, vehicles, etc. Policies used for risk insurance industry, allow more freedom than life insurance policies, but in general in the U.S. insurers have less opportunity to make policies for a particular consumer. Protecting the interests of policyholders - the object of national attention - is carried out through licensing of insurance agents and brokers, and by combating unfair competition. State laws require that an applicant for a license was a competent specialist in this field and has passed a special exam. Legislation to combat unfair competition stipulates in detail what actions are in the field of advertising, contracts and claims are prohibited or are discriminatory.
Insurance commissioners in the event of the insurers of insurance legislation may revoke the license or suspend it after notice and an administrative hearing. In practice, the withdrawal of the license is for reasons other than the company experienced financial difficulties. Insurance Commissioner may fall in fines insurers and insurance agents to suppress the practice of unfair competition.
Financial regulation of U.S. insurers is made up of the establishment of financial standards, rules, financial reporting and verification of insurance companies, as well as actions against insolvent insurers.
Financial standards - a requirement that the insurance shall comply with digging in the establishment or, if already registered elsewhere, when applying for a license. In the U.S., use the following forms: requirements for the deposit requirement to own capital and capital reserve requirements. The deposit, which insurance companies have with their registration to the account of the Treasury of the State, is relatively small. Capital requirements are intended to ensure the availability of resources from the firm in case of an unexpected increase in benefit liabilities, or falling asset values. On average, the minimum equity capital shall be U.S. $ 2 million. In many states, a capital reserve equal to the value of equity.
In 1990 the National Association of Insurance Commissioners has proposed to replace the fixed size of the minimum capital requirements of the standards of risk / capital (IBS), which allow you to link to your own requirements and reserve capital of the company with the features of insurable risks. IBS is the same for all states, and provide the regulatory authorities to implement measures against the insurers, whose capital falls below the standard.
Financial monitoring is carried out by insurance agencies to verify compliance with established standards of the company and includes the provision of the insurers annual and quarterly financial reports, checking the correctness of accounting, the provision of insurance at the request of additional information to assess financial condition.
Insurance authorities for the financial situation give priority to companies that operate in the state. To identify companies that require priority attention, use ratings and other financial instruments, as well as the information system of insurance regulation. In the latter case, when evaluating the financial condition of insurers' use of ratings for 11 companies engaged in property insurance (ratings are divided into four categories: profitability, liquidity, reserves and overall financial condition) and 12 - for life insurance companies (profitability, investment, change voperatsiyah, overall financial condition).
Central to the monitoring of financial stability is to conduct regulatory audits of insurance companies. They set goals: the earliest possible detection of the insurers are financially disadvantaged and leading illegal activity, as well as gathering information for the adoption of adequate measures by insurance agencies.
When a full-scale verification of the study are subject to management and control, the plan of operation, record keeping, accounts, financial statements, data on losses, reserves, asset quality, re-insurance, etc.
The purpose of verification - confirmation of compliance submitted by the financial statements of its actual condition.
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