Find information about rules pertaining to the statistical reporting required of property and casualty insurers transacting business in Washington state.
Statistical reporting waivers
The commissioner has ruled that loss and expense data do not need to be gathered for mortgage guaranty insurance. Therefore the commissioner has waived statistical reporting requirements (WAC 284-24B-040(2), (3) (leg.wa.gov)) for mortgage guaranty insurance.
Premium thresholds for statistical reporting
On July 16, 2006, Washington state adopted new rules pertaining to statistical reporting by property and casualty insurers under RCW 48.19.370 (leg.wa.gov). The general requirements for statistical reporting are now found in Chapter 284-24B WAC (leg.wa.gov) and specific requirements for medical professional liability reports are in Chapter 284-24C WAC (leg.wa.gov).
A question has arisen about how these rules apply to insurers with a very small amount of premium for a particular line of business. Must these insurers report their data to a statistical agent?
For all lines of business except medical professional liability, Washington state’s rules incorporate the provisions of the NAIC Statistical Handbook. For many lines of business, the handbook contains a premium threshold that says, in essence:
- If an insurer’s statewide written premium for the given line of business exceeds a certain threshold, it must report its data under the statistical plan in the handbook.
- If an insurer’s statewide written premium for the given line of business does not exceed the threshold, it must report some data in accordance with a statistical plan adopted by the commissioner.
Except for medical professional liability insurance, Washington state has not adopted any statistical plans to be used by insurers with small premium volumes. Therefore, if an insurer’s premium volume does not exceed the threshold stated in the NAIC Statistical Handbook, statistical reporting is permitted but is not required.
For a summary of the premium thresholds in the NAIC Statistical Handbook, see the table below.
Note: There are some lines of business for which the NAIC Statistical Handbook does not include a premium threshold. For these lines of business, every authorized insurer that writes the given line of business in Washington state is required to report its data to a designated statistical agent.
For medical professional liability insurance also, every authorized insurer must report the data required by Chapter 284-24C WAC (leg.wa.gov) to a designated statistical agent, if it has any data to report. There are no exceptions for low premium volume.
Washington state does not require statistical reporting for lines of business that are not covered by the NAIC Statistical Handbook or for lines of business for which no statistical agent has been designated.
Summary of the premium thresholds in the NAIC Statistical Handbook
Line of business | Company must report data for this line if: |
|---|---|
Commercial auto | Its state-written premium is in the top-98th percentile. |
Dwelling fire and allied lines | Its state-written premium is either in the top-90th percentile or more than $100,000. |
Commercial fire and allied lines | Its state-written premium exceeds the greater of (a) $100,000 and (b) the top-98th percentile of the total state-written premium for the line of business. |
Burglary and theft | Its state-written premium is in the top-90th percentile. |
Comprehensive personal liability | The company is required to report under either the homeowners and mobile home plan, or the dwelling fire and allied lines plan. |
Aircraft | Its country-wide written premium is in the top-98th percentile. |
Fidelity and surety | Its country-wide written premium is in the top-90th percentile for fidelity or surety. |
Private passenger auto | Any business is written. All companies must report. |
General liability | The Handbook specifies premium thresholds, but a company below the threshold must report data according to the instructions of the company’s statistical agent. |