New York State Insurance Department

Last updated

The New York State Insurance Department (NYSID) was the state agency responsible for supervising and regulating all insurance business in New York State. [1] It was regarded in the industry as one of the most state-of-the-art insurance regulatory agencies.

Contents

Continuing education for insurance professionals is regulated by each state's Department for Insurance, although there are commonalties across the states. See Insurance Continuing Education.

Effective October 3, 2011, Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature consolidated the New York State Insurance Department and the New York State Banking Department and created the New York State Department of Financial Services. [1] [2]

History

Until 1849, insurance companies doing business in New York State were chartered by special acts of the New York State Legislature. [1] In 1849, the Legislature passed a law requiring prospective insurance companies to file incorporation papers with the New York Secretary of State. [1] The law also vested regulatory power over insurance companies with the State Comptroller, who was authorized to require the companies to submit annual financial statements and to deny a company the right to operate if capital securities and investments did not remain secure.

In 1859, the New York State Legislature created the New York State Insurance Department, and assumed the functions of the Comptroller and Secretary of State relating to insurance. [1] The department began operations in 1860 and William F. Barnes was the first Superintendent of Insurance. [1] The Home Life Insurance Company based in Brooklyn, New York was the first life insurer to be authorized by the newly formed New York State Insurance Department in 1860. Superintendent Barnes supervised the filings of 155 fire insurance companies and 16 life insurance companies during his first year in office. [1]

By the 1870s, each state regulated insurance in some manner and most had an insurance department or agency. [1] However, because different state requirements led to confusion in the insurance industry, New York State Superintendent George W. Miller, in 1871, invited the heads of insurance departments or agencies from other states to meet in New York to strive for more uniform regulation. [1] Eighteen states met that year for the first session of what is now the National Association of Insurance Commissioners ("NAIC"). [1]

Mismanagement in the life insurance business, including exorbitant salaries and questionable investments, resulted in a 1905 investigation led by Charles Evans Hughes. [1] The investigation, known as the "Armstrong Investigation", led to the passage of a law that set forth a series of reforms, including mandatory periodic examinations of all life insurers. [1]

During the Great Depression, the Insurance Department promoted new rules clarifying insurer investment requirements, setting more equitable determination of cash surrender values and forfeitures, and recognizing up-to-date values and improvements in mortality tables. [1] They also carried out liquidations, such as the 1934 liquidation of the Consolidated Indemnity and Insurance Company. [3]

After World War II, the Insurance Department pioneered many consumer protections, including comprehensive mandated health insurance benefits, open enrollment, and prohibitions against insurers arbitrarily dropping an individual's health insurance coverage. [1]

The New York State Insurance Department was the first insurance department or agency in the United States to establish a capital markets group to examine and measure the risks in insurer investment practices, and was the first state to recognize the importance of segregating multiple lines insurance from financial guaranty insurance as a means of preventing systemic risk. [1]

In 2001, New York was the first state to establish an Insurance Emergency Operations Center ("IEOC"), which was designed to accelerate disaster assessments and expedite claims payments to disaster victims. [1] The IEOC helped New Yorkers recover from the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

During the financial crisis of 2008, the Insurance Department helped stabilize financial guaranty insurers and worked with federal regulators to ensure that AIG did not collapse when it experienced a liquidity crisis. [1]

In 2011, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature consolidated the New York State Insurance Department and the New York State Banking Department and created the New York State Department of Financial Services. [1] [2] James J. Wrynn was the fortieth and last Superintendent of Insurance. [4] Following the creation of the New York Department of Financial Services Benjamin Lawsky (2011–2015) and Maria Vullo (2016--) were each appointed and confirmed as Superintendent of Financial Services thereby assuming the powers and duties formerly held by the Superintendent of Insurance.

List of superintendents

[ verification needed ]

SuperintendentTook officeLeft officePartyNotes
William Barnes Sr. January 12, 1860February 5, 1870Republicantwo terms
George W. Miller February 4, 1870May 12, 1872
George B. Church May 13, 1872November 28, 1872
Orlow W. Chapman November 29, 1872January 31, 1876
William Smyth February 1, 1876February 20, 1877
John F. Smyth February 21, 1877April 26, 1880
Charles G. Fairman April 27, 1880April 22, 1883
John A. McCall April 23, 1883December 31, 1885
Robert A. Maxwell January 1, 1886February 11, 1891Democrat
James F. Pierce February 12, 1891February 10, 1897Democrattwo terms
Louis F. Payn February 11, 1897February 1, 1900Republicanone term
Francis Hendricks February 2, 1900May 16, 1906Republicantwo terms
Otto Kelsey May 17, 1906January 13, 1909Republican
Henry D. Appleton January 14, 1909February 17, 1909
William H. Hotchkiss February 18, 1909February 18, 1912
William T. Emmet February 21, 1912April 1, 1914
Frank Hasbrouck April 2, 1914June 30, 1915
Jesse S. Phillips July 1, 1915October 31, 1921
Henry D. Appleton November 1, 1921November 30, 1921
Francis R. Stoddard Jr. December 1, 1921June 30, 1924
James A. Beha July 1, 1924December 31, 1928
Albert Conway January 1, 1929July 30, 1930
Thomas F. Behan July 1, 1930February 16, 1931
Henry A. Thellusson February 17, 1931March 4, 1931
George S. Van Schaick March 5, 1931March 10, 1935
Louis H. Pink May 10, 1935January 31, 1943
Robert E. Dineen September 23, 1943June 30, 1950
Alfred J. Bohlinger July 1, 1950January 31, 1955
Leffert Holz February 3, 1955March 15, 1958
Julius S. Wikler March 17, 1958January 26, 1959
Thomas Thacher January 27, 1959October 2, 1963
Samuel C. Cantor October 3, 1963January 27, 1964
Henry Root Stern January 28, 1964December 31, 1966
Richard E. Stewart January 1, 1967December 31, 1970
Benjamin R. Schenck January 1, 1971March 10, 1975
Lawrence W. Keepnews March 18, 1975April 21, 1975
John P. Gemma May 8, 1975June 23, 1975
Thomas A. Harnett June 24, 1975July 20, 1977
John F. Lennon July 21, 1977January 4, 1978
Albert B. Lewis January 5, 1978March 7, 1983
James P. Corcoran March 9, 1983January 26, 1990
Wendy Cooper January 27, 1990July 1, 1990
Salvatore R. Curiale July 1, 1990December 31, 1994
Edward J. Muhl February 14, 1995December 29, 1996Republican
Neil D. Levin April 1, 1997April 5, 2001Republican
Gregory V. Serio May 9, 2001January 17, 2005Republican
Howard Mills III May 18, 2005December 31, 2006Republican
Louis W. Pietroluongo January 1, 2007January 28, 2007
Eric R. Dinallo January 29, 2007July 3, 2009Democrat
Kermitt J. Brooks July 4, 2009August 18, 2009Democrat
James J. Wrynn 20092011Democrat

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Banking in the United States</span>

In the United States, banking had begun by the 1780s, along with the country's founding. It has developed into a highly influential and complex system of banking and financial services. Anchored by New York City and Wall Street, it is centered on various financial services, such as private banking, asset management, and deposit security.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Office of the Comptroller of the Currency</span> American federal government organization

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is an independent bureau within the United States Department of the Treasury that was established by the National Currency Act of 1863 and serves to charter, regulate, and supervise all national banks and thrift institutions and the federally licensed branches and agencies of foreign banks in the United States. The acting Comptroller of the Currency is Michael J. Hsu, who took office on May 10, 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chief Financial Officer of Florida</span> Elected statewide constitutional officer of Florida

The chief financial officer of Florida is an elected statewide constitutional officer of Florida. The office was created in 2002 following the 1998 reforms of the Florida Cabinet. The CFO is a combination of the former offices of comptroller and treasurer/insurance commissioner/fire marshal. The office heads the Florida Department of Financial Services and is responsible for overseeing the state's finances, collecting revenue, paying state bills, auditing state agencies, regulating cemeteries and funerals, and handling fires and arsons. In addition, the CFO has administrative oversight over the offices which handles banking and insurance regulation. The CFO is a member of the Cabinet is third in the line of succession to the office of Governor of Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Texas Department of Insurance</span> Regulatory agency in Texas

The Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) regulates insurers and other companies that conduct insurance business in Texas, and assists Texas-based insurance consumers. TDI was founded in 1876 as the Department of Insurance, Statistics and History.

Australia's insurance market can be divided into roughly three components: life insurance, general insurance and health insurance. These markets are fairly distinct, with most larger insurers focusing on only one type, although in recent times several of these companies have broadened their scope into more general financial services, and have faced competition from banks and subsidiaries of foreign financial conglomerates. With services such as disability insurance, income protection and even funeral insurance, these insurance giants are stepping in to fill the gap where people may have otherwise been in need of a personal or signature loan from their financial institution.

Insurance law is the practice of law surrounding insurance, including insurance policies and claims. It can be broadly broken into three categories - regulation of the business of insurance; regulation of the content of insurance policies, especially with regard to consumer policies; and regulation of claim handling wise.

QBE Insurance Group Limited is an Australian multinational general insurance and reinsurance company headquartered in Sydney, Australia. QBE offers commercial, personal and specialty products and risk management products. The company employs around 13,500 people in 27 countries.

Bond insurance, also known as "financial guaranty insurance", is a type of insurance whereby an insurance company guarantees scheduled payments of interest and principal on a bond or other security in the event of a payment default by the issuer of the bond or security. It is a form of "credit enhancement" that generally results in the rating of the insured security being the higher of (i) the claims-paying rating of the insurer or (ii) the rating the bond would have without insurance.

Insurance in the United States refers to the market for risk in the United States, the world's largest insurance market by premium volume. According to Swiss Re, of the $6.782 trillion of global direct premiums written worldwide in 2022, $2.959 trillion (43.6%) were written in the United States.

The National Organization of Life and Health Insurance Guaranty Associations is a voluntary, U.S. association made up of the life and health insurance guaranty associations of all 50 states and the District of Columbia. NOLHGA was founded in 1983 to coordinate the efforts of state guaranty associations to provide protection to policyholders when their multi-state life or health insurance company becomes insolvent. The organization is based in Herndon, Virginia.

The New York State Banking Department was created by the New York Legislature on April 15, 1851, with a chief officer to be known as the Superintendent. The New York State Banking Department was the oldest bank regulatory agency in the United States.

Stranger-originated life insurance ("STOLI") generally means any act, practice, or arrangement, at or prior to policy issuance, to initiate or facilitate the issuance of a life insurance policy for the intended benefit of a person who, at the time of policy origination, does not have an insurable interest in the life of the insured under the laws of the applicable state. This includes the purchase of life insurance with resources or guarantees from or through a person that, at the time of policy initiation, could not lawfully initiate the policy; an arrangement or other agreement to transfer ownership of the policy or the policy benefits to another person; or a trust or similar arrangement that is used directly or indirectly for the purpose of purchasing one or more policies for the intended benefit of another person in a manner that violates the insurable interest laws of the state. The main characteristic of a STOLI transaction is that the insurance is purchased solely as an investment vehicle, rather than for the benefit of the policy owner's beneficiaries. STOLI arrangements are typically promoted to consumers between the age of 65 and 85.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reliance Insurance Company</span>

Reliance Insurance Company, now officially known as Reliance Insurance Company [in Liquidation], was founded in Philadelphia in 1817 and has undergone numerous corporate makeovers in the intervening years. Since October 3, 2001, the company has been in liquidation. As of 2020, Reliance was still in liquidation.

The New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance (DOBI) is one of 15 principal departments in New Jersey government. The department's mission is to regulate the banking, insurance and real estate industries in a professional and timely manner that protects and educates consumers and promotes the growth, financial stability and efficiency of these industries. The Commissioner of DOBI is Marlene Caride.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Financial Stability Oversight Council</span> United States systemic risk agency

The Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) is a United States federal government organization, established by Title I of the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, which was signed into law by President Barack Obama on July 21, 2010. The Office of Financial Research is intended to provide support to the council.

Insurance regulatory law is the body of statutory law, administrative regulations and jurisprudence that governs and regulates the insurance industry and those engaged in the business of insurance. Insurance regulatory law is primarily enforced through regulations, rules and directives by state insurance departments as authorized and directed by statutory law enacted by the state legislatures. However, federal law, court decisions and administrative adjudications also play an important role.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New York State Department of Financial Services</span> Responsible for regulating financial services and products

The New York State Department of Financial Services is the department of the New York state government responsible for regulating financial services and products, including those subject to the New York insurance, banking and financial services laws.

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) is a statutory body under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Finance, Government of India and is tasked with regulating and licensing the insurance and re-insurance industries in India. It was constituted by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 1999, an Act of Parliament passed by the Government of India. The agency's headquarters are in Hyderabad, Telangana, where it moved from Delhi in 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benjamin Lawsky</span> American lawyer

Benjamin Meier Lawsky is an American attorney and New York State's first Superintendent of Financial Services serving through June, 2015, and former Acting Superintendent of Banks serving through 2011.

The Ohio Department of Insurance (ODI) is an Ohio state government administrative agency. The ODI provides consumer protection through education and regulation while promoting a stable and competitive environment for insurance companies.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 [History, About Us, New York State Department of Financial Services, retrieved on March 5, 2012, at http://www.dfs.ny.gov/about/history.htm New York State Department of Financial Services website]
  2. 1 2 Part A of Chapter 62 of the Laws of 2011
  3. "Liquidation Is Ordered", The New York Times , May 30, 1934, pg. 31.
  4. James J. Wrynn, Deputy Superintendent of Financial Services, Leadership, About Us, New York State Department of Financial Services, retrieved on March 5, 2012, at http://www.dfs.ny.gov/about/staff_bios/jwrynn.htm