AnalysisSenate Bill 185 requires any subcontractor of a title insurance agent or agency to maintain errors and omissions insurance to cover an agency’s or agent’s delegation of functions related to escrows in real property and tasks the Ohio Department of Insurance (ODI) with issuing rules to implement the new insurance requirement.
The superintendent of the ODI has issued proposed rule 3901-7-02 which specifies a minimum errors and omissions policy limit of $500,000 for title insurance agencies and agents, and $250,000 for subcontractors, but in a phone conversation with the attorney handling the proposed rule, the minimum policy limit for subcontractors will be reduced to $50,000 in a revision to the proposed rule that will be published for comment shortly.
The attorney said that a title insurance agency or agent can maintain insurance which would cover subcontractors, in which case the subcontractor would not be required to have a policy. The attorney also said that the errors and omissions policy must cover all acts of Notary Signing Agents, and not just notarial acts performed in real estate closings.
The insurance policy requirement takes effect January 1, 2007, even though the final rule establishing policy amounts will not be published by that date. This means that NSAs must obtain an errors and omissions policy in any amount by that date, or title insurance agencies or agents must obtain insurance to cover all acts by subcontractors.
When the final rule is published, a separate New Law Alert will be issued.
Read Senate Bill 185.