69O-196.010. Refunds

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2), a premium finance company shall be responsible to refund to the insured all moneys due or held on the insured’s behalf, within 30 days after receipt of the funds from an insurer or other person. Refunds arising for reasons other than cancellation of the contract may be sent directly from the premium finance company to the insured or the insurance agent.

(2) Upon receipt of a cancellation notice from a premium finance company, the insurer shall within thirty (30) days, refund the unearned premium to the premium finance company and notify the insured, agent and premium finance company of the amount of unearned premium which is being returned to the premium finance company and the amount of the agent’s unearned commission held by the agent. The notice must indicate to the insured that the amount of unearned premium refunded to the premium finance company and the amount of unearned commission that is held by the agent quoted in this notice will be used by the premium finance company to satisfy the insured’s loan balance and other obligations under the premium finance agreement prior to the refund to the insured.

(a) Within 15 days of receipt of the funds, if the premium finance company chooses to refund or credit to the agent, the premium finance company shall notify the insured and agent of the refunded amount and return or credit said funds to the insurance agent.

(b) Within 15 days of receipt of the notification as outlined above and the receipt or credit of any unearned premium, the agent shall return the unearned premium including any unearned commission or other funds due the insured or, with written approval of the insured, apply the unearned premium and unearned commission to other insurance products regulated by the department. Under no circumstances may the agent withhold the return of the unearned commission or unearned premium to the insured after notification by the insurer and premium finance company.

(3) The earned service charge may be calculated to the date the unearned premium is received from the insurer; however, interest may continue to accrue at the rate of $12 per $100 per year on any balance still outstanding.

(4) If the insurer fails to refund the unearned premium within 30 days as required by Section 627.7283, F.S., the premium finance company shall immediately notify the insured that the insurer has not paid the unearned premium and that interest will continue to accrue on the amount still outstanding until it is paid. The form of notification must be submitted to the Office for approval, together with the required form filing fee, and contain at a minimum, appropraite blanks which will facilitate the designation of the name of the insurance company, the name of the insurance agent, the policy number, the cancellation date, and the unpaid premium balance due under the contract.

Specific Authority 624.308, 627.848 FS. Law Implemented 624.307(1), 627.7283, 627.832(1), 627.838, 627.840, 627.848, 627.849 FS. History– New 10-5-89, Formerly 4-18.010, Amended 7-27-95, 1-16-01, Formerly 4-196.010, Amended 6-8-05.