Revisions to New York’s Proposed Best Interest Standard for Life Insurance and Annuities
View Debevoise Update
Key takeaways:
- NYDFS’ revised rule maintains the “best interest” standard for most annuity and life insurance products, emphasizing that agents (or insurers where no agent is involved) may only consider the consumer’s best interest—not the financial interest of the agent, insurer or any other party—in recommending products.
- Insurers must maintain a robust “system of supervision” ensuring that the best interest standard is met.
- The revised rule is subject to an additional 30-day comment period, but NYDFS’s comments accompanying the new proposal indicate that the rule is unlikely to change substantially.