AI-assisted research summary: This section limits when certain surplus lines insurance companies and producers may operate, and requires a commissioner-approved disclosure stamp before a policy or binder is delivered.
I. Foreign unlicensed companies that satisfy the provisions of RSA 405:26 and are approved by the commissioner as unadmitted surplus lines companies are not subject to any statutory or regulatory provision unless the statute or regulation specifically references unadmitted surplus lines companies; provided however, unadmitted surplus lines companies shall be subject to RSA 417:1 through RSA 417:22 and investigations under RSA 400-A:16 with respect to any statutory or regulatory provision to which unadmitted surplus lines companies are subject. II. (a) Surplus lines insurance may be placed by a surplus lines licensee if the insurer is authorized to write the type of insurance in its domiciliary jurisdiction, and either meets the criteria established through a multi-state agreement pursuant to RSA 405-B:3 or meets one of the following criteria: (b) The insurer has capital and surplus or its equivalent under the laws of its domiciliary jurisdiction which equals the greater of: (1) The minimum capital and surplus requirements under RSA 401:4 or RSA 402:13; (2) Fifteen million dollars; or (3) The insurer is a nonadmitted insurer domiciled outside the United States that is listed on the Quarterly Listing of Alien Insurers maintained by the International Insurers Department of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. III. The commissioner, pursuant to RSA 402-J, may issue a producer license to a resident of the state permitting the producer named therein to procure insurance policies and contracts of insurance or suretyship to be effective in this state in foreign insurance companies not authorized to transact business in this state, but which are duly authorized to do business in some state having an insurance commissioner, or in a domestic insurer authorized to do business in accordance with paragraph IV. Such insurance or suretyship placed with an unadmitted surplus lines company shall be for such amount as the producer cannot place with an admitted company, and shall not be placed until the producer has first satisfied the insurance commissioner that the producer cannot procure such an insurance in an admitted company. For purposes of this paragraph, an insurer authorized to do business in accordance with paragraph IV shall not be deemed to be authorized or admitted. Before delivering to the insured a policy or binder of insurance written under the provisions of this section, every producer shall have stamped in a form approved by the commissioner on the face of the binder or policy the following: "The company issuing this policy is an eligible surplus lines insurer in the state of New Hampshire and the rates charged and policy forms used have not been approved by the commissioner of insurance. If the company issuing this policy becomes insolvent, the New Hampshire insurance guaranty fund shall not be liable for any claims made against the policy." IV. A domestic insurer possessing policyholder surplus of at least $15,000,000 may, pursuant to a resolution by its board of directors, and with the approval of the commissioner, be designated as a domestic surplus lines insurer. The authority of a domestic surplus lines insurer in this state shall be limited to providing insurance covering risks procured from a surplus lines producer in accordance with this section. A domestic surplus lines insurer is not subject to the provisions of Title XXXVII, except that it shall be subject to any statute or regulation which specifically references unadmitted surplus lines companies and to the provisions of RSA 400-A:37, RSA 400-A:39, RSA 404-F, and RSA 417:1 through 417:31. Source: Source. 1911, 168:1. PL 275:20. RL 325:25. 1947, 173:1. RSA 405:24. 1959, 206:1. 1969, 366:6. 1983, 473:12. 1986, 59:1. 2000, 315:12. 2001, 95:5. 2008, 255:2. 2011, 191:6, eff. Aug. 13, 2011. 2025, 191:4, eff. Sept. 13, 2025.