Article 71p. 71

COMMERCIAL LAWS NEGOTIABLE INSTRUMENTS, CORPORATION, INSURANCE, TRANSPORTATION, BANKING

violation of any existing law, rule and regulation, or any

provision of this Code after due notice and hearing.

TITLE 3 Resident Agents

SECTION 322. No person shall act as resident agent,

as hereinafter defined, unless he is registered as such

with the Commissioner.

SECTION 323. The term resident agent, as used in this

title, is one duly appointed by a foreign insurer or broker

not authorized to do business in the Philippines to receive

in its behalf notices, summons and legal processes in

connection

with

actions

or

other

legal proceedings

against such foreign insurer or broker.

SECTION 324. The application for a certificate of

registration

as

resident

agent

filed

with

the

Commissioner must be accompanied with a copy of the

power of attorney, duly notarized and authenticated by

the Philippine Consul in the place where such foreign

insurer or broker is domiciled, empowering the applicant

to act as resident agent and to receive notices, summons

and legal processes for and in behalf of such foreign

insurer or broker in connection with any action or legal

proceeding against such foreign insurer or broker.

SECTION 325. It shall be the duty of such resident

agent to notify immediately the Commissioner of any

change of his office address.

SECTION 326. A certificate of registration issued to a

resident agent shall expire on the thirty-first day of

December of the third year following its issuance unless it

is renewed.

The Commissioner may, after due notice and hearing,

recall or cancel the certificate of registration issued to a

resident agent for violation of any existing law, rule or

regulation, or any provision of this Code.

TITLE 4 Non-Life Company Underwriter

SECTION 327. No person shall act, and no company

shall

employ

any

person,

as

non-life

company

underwriter, whose duty and responsibility it shall be to

select, evaluate and accept risks for, and to determine the

terms

and

conditions, including those pertaining to

amounts of retentions, under which such risks are to be

accepted by the company, unless such underwriter is

registered as such with the Commissioner.

SECTION

328.

Every

non-life

insurance

company

doing business in the Philippines must maintain at all

times a register of risks accepted and a claims register for

each line of risks engaged in by such non-life insurance

company with such entries therein as are now or as may

hereafter be required by the Commissioner, and it shall

be the responsibility of the underwriter on the particular

line of risk involved to see to it that the said registers are

well maintained and kept, and that all entries therein are

properly and correctly recorded. Such registers shall be

open to inspection and examination of duly authorized

representatives of the Commissioner at all times during

business hours.

SECTION 329. No person shall be registered with the

Commissioner,

unless

such person shall be at least

twenty-one

(21)

years

of

age

on

the

date

of such

registration; a resident of the Philippines; of good moral

character and with no conviction of any crime involving

moral turpitude; has had at the time such registration is

made at least two (2) years of underwriting work in the

particular line of risk involved; and has passed such

qualifying written examination that the Commissioner

shall conduct at such time and in such place as he may

decide

to

hold

for

applicants

desiring

to

act

as

underwriters.

Such examination shall not be required of any person

who has served as non-life company underwriter for a

period of at least five (5) years, if the Commissioner is

satisfied of the applicant's competence as shown by the

results of his underwriting work in the non-life insurance

company

or

companies that employed him in that

capacity. The minimum underwriting experience herein

required may be reduced or waived if it is shown to the

satisfaction

of

the

Commissioner

that

the

non-life

company

underwriter

has

undergone

extensive

education and/or training in insurance.

SECTION 330. Any applicant who misrepresents or

omits any material fact in his application for registration

as a non-life company underwriter, or commits any

dishonest

act

in

taking

or

in

connection

with

the

qualifying written examination for underwriters, shall be

barred from being registered as such non-life company

underwriter and, if already registered, his registration

shall be cancelled and the certificate of registration

issued in his favor shall be recalled immediately by the

Commissioner.

In the event that the certificate of authority of a

non-life

insurance

company

to

transact

business

is

suspended or revoked due to business failure arising

largely from the imprudent and injudicious acceptance of

risks by the underwriter concerned, the registration of

such underwriter shall likewise be cancelled and his

certificate

of

registration

shall

be

recalled

by

the

Commissioner, and no similar certificate shall thereafter

be issued in his favor.

SECTION 331. No certificate of registration issued to

an underwriter shall be valid after December 31 of the

third year following its issuance unless it is renewed.

The Commissioner may, after due notice and hearing,

also suspend or cancel such certificate for violation of

existing laws, rules and regulations or of any provisions of

this Code.

TITLE 5 Adjusters

SECTION 332. No person, partnership, association, or

corporation

shall

act

as

an

adjuster,

as

hereinafter

defined, unless authorized so to act by virtue of a license

issued or renewed by the Commissioner pursuant to the

provisions of this Code: Provided, That in the case of a

natural person, he must be a Filipino citizen and in the

case of a partnership, association or corporation, at least

sixty percent (60%) of its capital must be owned by

citizens of the Philippines.

SECTION 333. An adjuster may be an independent

adjuster or a public adjuster.

The term independent adjuster means any person,

partnership, association or corporation which, for money,

commission or any other thing of value, acts for or on

behalf of an insurer in the adjusting of claims arising

under insurance contracts or policies issued by such

insurer.

The

term

public

adjuster

means

any

person,

partnership, association or corporation which, for money,

commission or any other thing of value, acts on behalf of

an insured in negotiating for, or effecting, the settlement

of a claim or claims of the said insured arising under

insurance contracts or policies, or which advertises for or

solicits employment as an adjuster of such claims.

SECTION

334.

For

every

line of insurance claim

adjustment,

adjusters

shall

be

licensed

either

as

independent adjusters or as public adjusters. No adjuster

shall act on behalf of an insurer unless said adjuster is

licensed as an independent adjuster; and no adjuster

shall act on behalf of an insured unless said adjuster is

licensed as a public adjuster: Provided, however , That

when a firm or person has been licensed as a public

adjuster, he shall not be granted another license as

independent adjuster and vice versa.

No

license,

however,

shall

be

required

of

any

company adjuster who is a salaried employee of an

insurance company for the adjustment of claims filed

under policies issued by such insurance company.

SECTION 335. Such license or any renewal thereof

may

be

issued

by

the

Commissioner

upon

written

© Compiled by RGL

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