500.7941 Assessments on member insurers; purpose; allocation of claim payments and costs to categories; separate assessments for each category; use, amount, and rate of assessment; remittance and administration of assessments; notice; limitation; exemption or deferment; recognition of assessments in rate-making procedures; refunds; revocation of certificate of authority.

Sec. 7941.

    (1) To the extent necessary to secure funds for the association for payment of covered claims and for payment of reasonable costs of administering the association, including the cost of indemnifying members of the board of governors, other member insurers, officers, employees, and other persons acting on behalf of the association to the extent permitted by law and the plan of operation, the association shall levy assessments upon all member insurers. The association shall allocate its claim payments and costs to the following 5 categories:

    (a) Worker's compensation insurance.

    (b) Automobile insurance.

    (c) Title insurance.

    (d) Fire, allied lines, farm owner's multiple peril, homeowner's multiple peril, inland marine, earthquake, and credit insurance.

    (e) All other kinds of insurance except life and disability insurance.

    (2) Separate assessments shall be made for each category prescribed in subsection (1). The assessment for each category shall be used to pay the claim payments and costs allocated to that category. The assessment for each category shall be in proportion to the net direct premiums written, after deducting dividends paid or credited to policyholders, by each member insurer in this state for kinds of insurance included within each category, as reported in the most recent annual statement available at the time of assessment. The rate of assessment shall be a uniform percentage of the premiums for all member insurers. The assessments shall be remitted to and administered by the association in accordance with the plan of operation. Each member insurer assessed shall have not less than 30 days' advance written notice of the date the assessment is due and payable.

    (3) A member insurer shall not be assessed during a calendar year for more than 1% of its net direct premiums written in this state during the previous calendar year. The commissioner may exempt a member insurer from all or part of an assessment or may defer, in whole or in part, the assessment of a member insurer, if the assessment would cause the member insurer's financial statement to reflect amounts of capital or surplus less than the minimum amounts required for a certificate of authority by any jurisdiction in which the member insurer is authorized to transact insurance. However, during the period of exemption or deferment, dividends shall not be declared or paid to shareholders or policyholders. If a member insurer is exempted from all or part of an assessment, or if an assessment against a member insurer is deferred in whole or in part, the amount of the exemption or deferred assessment may be assessed against the other member insurers in a manner consistent with the basis for assessments prescribed in this section. The commissioner may impose conditions on an exemption or deferral which he or she considers reasonable and necessary.

    (4) The assessments shall be recognized in the rate-making procedures for insurance rates in the same manner that expenses and premium taxes are recognized. Unused assessments and reimbursements from the receiver remaining in a category in excess of covered claims and expenses allocated to that category shall be refunded by the association to each member insurer who paid the assessments for that category in proportion to its assessments paid. An insurer that ceases to be a member of the association shall not have a right to a refund of an assessment previously remitted to the association. The commissioner may revoke the certificate of authority to transact business in this state of a member insurer that fails to pay an assessment when due as provided in this act and after a demand has been made.