OGC Op. No. 04-04-03
The Office of General Counsel issued the following informal opinion on April 2, 2004, representing the position of the New York State Insurance Department.
Re: Definitions
Questions Presented
1. What is the definition of "admitted insurer"?
2. What is the definition of "authorized insurer"?
3. What is the definition of "non-admitted insurer"?
Conclusions
1. New York Insurance Law does not define "admitted insurer".
2. N.Y. Ins. Law § 107(a)(10) (McKinney Supp. 2004) defines "authorized insurer".
3. New York Insurance Law does not define "non-admitted insurer".
Facts
No facts were provided.
Analysis
N.Y. Ins. Law § 107(a)(10) (McKinney Supp. 2004) defines "authorized insurer", in relevant part, as:
. . . an insurer authorized as such to do an insurance business in this state in compliance with this chapter, by reason of a license so to do issued and in force pursuant to the laws of this state or of a corporate charter granted and in force pursuant to the laws of this state, but not including any insurer herein exempted from compliance with the requirement that it obtain a license to do business.
An "unauthorized insurer" would be one that does not meet the above definition. Although other states may define the terms "admitted" or "unadmitted", there is no definition of these terms in the New York Insurance Law, even though these terms are used in the insurance business. Generally, the vernacular use of the terms translates as follows: "admitted" means "authorized" as that term is defined above in N.Y. Ins. Law § 107(10) (McKinney Supp. 2004), and "unadmitted" means "unauthorized"; however, the meaning may vary with the context in which it is used.
For further information one may contact Senior Attorney Susan A. Dess at the New York City Office.