Ark. Code Ann. § 23-66-308 (2026)
Rebates, discounts, abatements, etc
- No property, casualty, or surety insurer or any employee thereof and no broker, agent, or solicitor shall pay, allow, or give, or offer to pay, allow, or give, directly or indirectly, as an inducement to insure or after insurance has been effected, any rebate, discount, abatement, credit, or reduction of the premium named in a policy of insurance, or any special favor or advantage in the dividends or other benefits to accrue thereon, or any valuable consideration or inducement whatever not specified in the policy except to the extent provided for in an applicable filing with the Insurance Commissioner as provided by law.
- No insured named in a policy, nor any employee of the insured, shall knowingly receive or accept, directly or indirectly, any such rebate, discount, abatement, credit, or reduction of premium, or any special favor or advantage or valuable consideration or inducement.
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This section shall not be construed as prohibiting:
- The payment of commissions or other compensation to licensed agents, brokers, or solicitors;
- An insurer from allowing or returning to its participating policyholders, members, or subscribers any dividends, savings, or unabsorbed premium deposits; or
- A licensed insurance consultant who is also a licensed producer from adjusting or refunding to his or her clients any part of a consulting fee under a prior written agreement with a client paying total annual premiums, for all lines of business, of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) or more based on commissions received by the consultant from insurers.
- This section does not include within the definition of rebates or otherwise prohibit the practice of engaging in an arrangement that would not violate section 106 of the Bank Holding Company Act Amendments of 1972, 12 U.S.C. § 1972, as interpreted by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, or section 1464(q) of the Home Owners' Loan Act, 12 U.S.C. § 1461 et seq.
- The commissioner may promulgate rules to implement this section.
History. Acts 1959, No. 148, § 226; A.S.A. 1947, § 66-3019; Acts 2003, No. 1747, § 7; 2011, No. 797, §§ 2, 3.
Amendments. The 2011 amendment subdivided (c); and added (c)(3) and (e).
Case Notes
Purpose.
This section was intended to, and clearly and unambiguously does, provide what the insurer will charge for an insurance policy and what the insured must pay for it. It leaves no alternative; it says that the insurance carrier must charge the premium shown on the policy and that the insured will not knowingly pay anything other than the premium shown unless there are applicable filings authorizing a premium other than that shown. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Crist, 664 F. Supp. 1242 (W.D. Ark. 1987), rev'd, 855 F.2d 1326 (8th Cir. Ark. 1988).
Sharing Commissions.
Former similar section was not designed to legalize the payment of a commission to the agent of any other company than the one from whom he received the commission, otherwise, it would serve to constitute only a cloak to enable a violator of former section which prohibited the sharing of premiums with unlicensed persons to do the things that are condemned by statute. Schneider v. O'Neal, 145 F. Supp. 120 (E.D. Ark. 1956), aff'd in part, reversed in part, 243 F.2d 914 (8th Cir. 1957) (decision under prior law).
Where an insurance agency entered into a contract with another agency not an authorized agent of the company whereby the first agency was to receive the commission on policies sold by it, the contract violated the Arkansas insurance statutes and was not enforceable. Schneider v. O'Neal, 145 F. Supp. 120 (E.D. Ark. 1956), aff'd in part, reversed in part, 243 F.2d 914 (8th Cir. 1957) (decision under prior law).