Chapter 33, Chapter 33

All life or sickness and accident insurance policies, certificates or contracts issued to persons in this state shall have a notice prominently printed on the first page of the policy, certificate or contract stating in substance that the insured person or person obtaining the po…

A policy may contain additional provisions not inconsistent with this chapter and which are: (a) Required to be inserted by the laws of the insurer's domicile; (b) Necessary, because of the manner in which the insurer is constituted or operated, in order to state the rights and o…

No policy shall contain any provision purporting to make any portion of the charter, bylaws or other constituent document of the insurer a part of the contract unless such portion is set forth in full in the policy. Any policy provision in violation of this section shall be inval…

No policy delivered or issued for delivery in West Virginia and covering a subject of insurance resident, located, or to be performed in West Virginia, shall contain any condition, stipulation or agreement requiring such policy to be construed according to the laws of any other s…

Any policy or contract of public liability insurance providing coverage for public liability sold, issued, or delivered in this state to any religious or charitable corporation or association, either directly or to the trustees of such associations, shall be read so as to contain…

Every insurance policy shall be executed in the name of and on behalf of the insurer by its officer, attorney-in-fact, employee, or representative duly authorized by the insurer. A facsimile signature of any such executing individual may be used in lieu of an original signature, …

Each policy issued following enactment of this provision during the two thousand five regular session, during the year following the effective date, shall display in a prominent location on the policy itself or on an insert included with each policy and provided to each policyhol…

(a) Two or more licensed insurers may jointly issue, and shall be jointly and severally liable on, an underwriters' policy bearing their names. Any one insurer may issue policies in the name of an underwriter's department and such policy shall plainly show the true name of the in…

Any insurance policy, rider, or endorsement hereafter issued and otherwise valid which contains any condition or provision not in compliance with the requirements of this chapter, shall not be thereby rendered invalid but shall be construed and applied in accordance with such con…

(a) Binders or other contracts for temporary insurance may be made orally or in writing, and shall be deemed to include all the usual terms of the policy as to which the binder was given together with such applicable endorsements as are designated in the binder, except as superse…

Any insurance policy terminating by its terms at a specified expiration date and not otherwise renewable, may be renewed or extended at the option of the insurer and upon a currently authorized policy form and at the premium rate then required therefor for a specific additional p…

(a) For purposes of this article, a loss payee is defined as the person or persons not a named insured designated on an automobile liability insurance policy contract as being entitled to the proceeds of or payments under such policy. (b) In every instance in which an insurer not…

No such insurer, agent or adjuster may engage in any act or practice of intimidation, coercion or threat for or against any such insured or claimant to use a particular company or location to obtain automobile glass replacement or repair services or products covered, in whole or …

Any purported cancellation by an insurer of a policy of automobile liability insurance which has been in effect for sixty days and which has been renewed shall be void if the purported cancellation is contrary to section one of this article. For purposes of this article, the tran…

"Declination" means either the refusal of an insurer to issue an automobile liability insurance policy upon receipt of a written nonbinding application or written request for coverage from its agent or an applicant. For the purposes of this article, the offering of insurance cove…

(a) Any individual of competent legal capacity may procure or effect an insurance contract upon his own life or body for the benefit of any person. But no person shall procure or cause to be procured any insurance contract upon the life or body of another individual unless the be…

(a) The Insurance Commissioner shall establish a guaranteed loss ratio which may be implemented by any insurer offering individual sickness and accident insurance policies other than limited benefits accident and sickness insurance policies or certificates, which are subject to l…

Notwithstanding the provisions of section one of this article: (a) Each insurer that provides personal lines liability insurance coverage, as that term is defined in section nine, article twelve of this chapter, to pay all or a portion of a claim asserted against an insurance pol…

Whenever the insured in a policy owned by him has reserved to himself the right to change the beneficiary thereunder, the insured shall have the right to and may assign said policy to the extent permitted by the terms thereof as collateral security for a loan or loans, or for any…

No insurance policy insuring against loss or damage through legal liability for the bodily injury or death by accident of any individual, or for damage to the property of any person, shall be retroactively annulled by any agreement between the insurer and the insured after the oc…

Whenever the proceeds of or payments under a life or accident and sickness policy or annuity contract heretofore or hereafter issued become payable in accordance with the terms of such policy or contract, or the exercise of any right or privilege thereunder, and the insurer makes…

Where the individual insured or the annuitant and the beneficiary designated in a life policy or policy insuring against accidental death or in an annuity contract have died and there is not sufficient evidence that they have died otherwise than simultaneously, the proceeds of th…

An insurer shall furnish, upon written request of any person claiming to have a loss under an insurance contract issued by such insurer, forms of proof of loss for completion by such person.

Without limitation of any right or defense of an insurer otherwise, none of the following acts by or on behalf of an insurer shall be deemed to constitute a waiver of any provision of a policy or of any defense of the insurer thereunder: (a) Acknowledgment of the receipt of notic…

(a) If a policy of insurance, whether heretofore or hereafter issued, is effected by any person on his own life or on another life, in favor of a person other than himself or, except in cases of transfer with intent to defraud creditors, if a policy of life insurance is assigned …

(a) A policy of group life insurance or the proceeds thereof payable to the individual insured or to the beneficiary thereunder, shall not be liable, either before or after payment, to be applied by any legal or equitable process to pay any liability of any person having a right …

(a) An insurer may not issue any policy of bodily injury or property damage liability insurance which excludes coverage to the owner or operator of a motor vehicle on account of bodily injury or property damage to any guest or invitee who is a passenger in such motor vehicle. (b)…

(a) No insurance contract on property or of any interest therein or arising therefrom shall be enforceable as to the insurance except for the benefit of persons having an insurable interest in the things insured. (b) "Insurable interest" as used in this section means any actual, …

The declination of an application for a private passenger policy of automobile liability insurance by an insurer, agent or broker is prohibited if the declination is: (a) Based upon the race, religion, nationality or ethnic group, of the applicant or named insured; (b) Based sole…

(a) Nothing contained in this article prohibits any insurer, agent or adjuster from providing to an insured or claimant a list that includes the names of automobile glass companies or locations that are reasonably close and convenient to the insured or claimant, and with which th…

In every instance in which a policy or contract of automobile liability insurance which has been in effect sixty days or which has been renewed is canceled by the insurer, the insurer or its duly authorized agent shall, in the notice of cancellation or at the written request of t…

(a) The Insurance Commissioner shall promulgate rules and regulations pursuant to chapter twenty-nine-a of this code establishing procedures for implementing the provisions of this article. (b) The commissioner shall have the authority to examine the records and files of any insu…

(a) Every insurance contract shall be construed according to the entirety of its terms and conditions as set forth in the policy and as amplified, extended or modified by any rider, endorsement or application attached to and made a part of the policy: Provided, That the word "phy…

(a) No policy or contract of bodily injury liability insurance, or of property damage liability insurance, covering liability arising from the ownership, maintenance or use of any motor vehicle, may be issued or delivered in this state to the owner of such vehicle, or may be issu…

Rates charged by insurers for the minimum uninsured motorist coverage required under the provisions of section thirty-one, of this article, shall be separate from the rates charged by an insurer for the optional limits afforded the policyholder under said section.

No insurer, in determining rates to be charged for a policy or contract of bodily injury liability insurance or of property damage liability insurance, covering liability arising from the ownership, maintenance or use of a motor vehicle, may discriminate in any manner on the basi…

(a) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply: (1) A "substandard risk" means an applicant for insurance who presents a greater exposure to loss than that contemplated by commonly used rate classifications, as evidenced by one or more of the following conditio…

(a) Optional limits of uninsured motor vehicle coverage and underinsured motor vehicle coverage required by §33-6-31 of this code shall be made available to the named insured at the time of initial application for liability coverage and upon any request of the named insured on a …

(a) When an automobile liability insurer indemnifying a tortfeasor offers to pay its full policy limits of coverage for bodily injury or death to a claimant in a claim involving a motor vehicle accident, conditioned upon an underinsured motorist coverage carrier waiving its right…

(a) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this article, insurers issuing or providing liability policies that are of an excess or umbrella type and which are written to cover automobile liability shall offer uninsured and underinsured motor vehicle coverage on such policies in …

(a) If the Division of Motor Vehicles establishes an electronic insurance verification program in accordance with the provisions of section six-a, article two-a, chapter seventeen-d of this code, any insurance company that issues or delivers in this state a policy or contract of …

(a) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply: (1) A "motor vehicle liability policy" means an "owner's policy" or an "operator's policy" of liability insurance certified as provided in section twelve, article four, chapter seventeen-d of this code. (2) "Exclu…

All individual and group health insurance policies providing coverage on an expense incurred basis and individual and group service or indemnity type contracts issued by a nonprofit corporation which provide coverage for a family member of the insured or subscriber shall, as to s…

Insurance companies doing business in this state shall use the most recent version of an "official used car guide" approved by the Insurance Commissioner as a guide for setting the minimum value of any motor vehicle involved in a claim settlement arising from the total loss of a …

(a) As used in this section, “filing” means any form filing made pursuant to §33-6-8 of this code or any rule or rate filing made pursuant to this chapter. (b) A fee of $100 shall be submitted with each filing for each insurer, irrespective of the number of forms, rules, or rates…

(a) No mass marketed life or health insurance including mass marketed life or health insurance under a group or blanket policy issued outside this state to residents of this state, shall be effected on persons in this state until the commissioner finds that the total charges for …

(a) In the event of death, legal separation or termination of the marital relationship of the named insured, the named insured or spouse covered by a motor vehicle liability policy for a period of two or more years shall, upon request of the named insured or spouse within thirty …

Notwithstanding of any provision of this chapter to the contrary, an insurer may cancel or nonrenew a combination automobile and homeowners policy of insurance if either the automobile or homeowners insurance in such policy may be cancelled or nonrenewed pursuant to the cancellat…

All individual and group health insurance policies providing coverage on an expense-incurred basis and individual and group service or indemnity type contracts issued by a nonprofit corporation shall provide coverage for long-term antibiotic therapy for a patient with Lyme diseas…

(a) For purposes of this section: "Covered services" means dental care services for which reimbursement is available/ under an enrollee’s plan contract, or for which reimbursement would be available but for the application of contractual limitations such as deductibles, copayment…