Life Insurance in Virginia

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Forbes Magazine in 2006 named Virginia the best state in the nation for business. It was the only state to rank in the top ten on all six categories that Forbes evaluated. As far as life insurance, 503 companies are licensed to do business in the state of Virginia, of which 8 are domiciled here.

According to the American Council of Life Insurers, state residents own 5 million individual life insurance policies, with coverage averaging $83,000 per policyholder. Their group life insurance coverage amounts to $260 billion, and they have $650 billion in death benefit coverage. Individual life insurance coverage purchased in 2006 in Virginia totaled $50 billion.

Virginia Offices Responsible for Life Insurance

Virginia's Bureau of Insurance provides everything a consumer needs to know about life insurance offered in Virginia. The Bureau is divided into four divisions:

• Financial Regulation
• Life and Health Market Regulation
• Property and Casualty Market Regulation
• Agent Regulation and Administration.

From the Department of Insurance's website, a consumer can check on the license of prospective insurance companies, learn facts about life insurance, and file a complaint if necessary.

If your insurance company has been declared insolvent, you may still be able to get your policies paid, by contacting the Virginia Life, Accident & Insurance Guaranty Association, which was created by a statute in 1976. If a member company goes bankrupt, they will meet its liabilities.

The legal statutes that regulate life insurance are defined in Virginia's Title 38.2. These regulations cover every step in the life insurance process from how companies become licensed, to how they must conduct their business.

Contacting the Virginia Bureau of Insurance