REPORT TITLE:
Insurance


DESCRIPTION:
Authorizes standard extended coverage endorsements offered by
hurricane insurers to qualify as comparable coverage to that
which would have been offered by the hurricane relief fund.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        2006 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES                H.B. NO.           H.D. 1        
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO THE HAWAII HURRICANE RELIEF FUND.



BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that the Hawaii hurricane
 
 2 relief fund (hereinafter "fund") has been assessing commercial
 
 3 insurers for their policies of hurricane insurance despite the
 
 4 total withdrawal of the fund from the provision of those
 
 5 commercial policies.  This was never the intent of the
 
 6 legislature.  The fund was created to address the lack of
 
 7 availability of coverage and was intended to encourage insurers
 
 8 to re-enter the market.  When the fund discontinues the provision
 
 9 of coverage because insurers have re-entered the market, the fund
 
10 should not continue to benefit from assessing insurers offering
 
11 those policies.  That is counterproductive to the eventual
 
12 elimination of the fund.  The legislature finds that an injustice
 
13 is occurring with the continued assessment of insurers which are
 
14 providing policies of insurance where the fund is not, and
 
15 intends that this measure be effective retroactively to reimburse
 
16 to the insurers the assessments so made.
 
17      The purpose of this Act is to treat standard extended
 
18 coverage endorsements offered by hurricane insurers as coverage
 
19 comparable to that which was once offered by the Hawaii hurricane
 

 
Page 2                                                     2006 
                                     H.B. NO.           H.D. 1        
                                                        
                                                        


 1 relief fund.
 
 2      SECTION 2.  Section 431P-10, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 3 amended by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:
 
 4      "(b)  Upon the authorization of the commissioner, insurers
 
 5 may provide standard extended coverage endorsements for
 
 6 residential property, including coverage of hurricane risks,
 
 7 subject to the fund's program for incentives and credits;
 
 8 provided that in the absence of such authorization no other
 
 9 policy of residential property insurance or endorsement to a
 
10 policy of residential property insurance on eligible residential
 
11 property located in this State shall be issued to provide
 
12 insurance for damages or losses caused by a covered event if such
 
13 coverage is less than that offered by the fund.  If standard
 
14 extended coverage endorsements on commercial property are no
 
15 longer being offered by the fund, any standard extended coverage
 
16 endorsements on commercial property, offered by an insurer shall
 
17 qualify as a comparable coverage as used in sub-paragraph 431P-
 
18 5(b)(8)(a).  Standard extended coverage endorsements on
 
19 residential property which includes coverage for hurricane losses
 
20 offered by an insurer shall qualify as a comparable coverage as
 
21 used in sub-paragraph 431P-5(b)(8)(a)."
 
22      SECTION 3.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed.
 
23 New statutory material is underscored.
 
24      SECTION 4.  This Act shall take effect retroactively to
 
25 September 1, 1998.