The insurance regulators for two of the U.S.'s major vacation rental markets — California and Florida — have issued statements against using opt-out sales practices to sell travel insurance.
In February, the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation issued an informational memorandum stating that online travel agencies that sell travel insurance by using opt-out methods are in violation of the state's Unfair Insurance Trade Practices Act. It advises that the practice of automatically charging consumers for ancillary travel insurance — unless customers take action to decline coverage — does not comply with the state's requirement of "informed consent."
Similarly, earlier this month, the California Department of Insurance issued a notice stating that using opt-out sales practices to sell travel insurance on travel websites violates state law. The department also notes that the California Insurance Commissioner can enforce pre-sale travel insurance disclosure requirements by imposing fines and suspending or revoking the license of any limited lines travel insurance agent.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free PropertyCasualty360 Digital Reader
Your access to unlimited PropertyCasualty360 content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking insurance news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Weekly Insurance Speak podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical converage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, BenefitsPRO and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
