§1576. Producer training requirements to sell annuity products

A. An insurance producer shall not solicit the sale of an annuity product unless the insurance producer has adequate knowledge of such annuity product to make a recommendation and the insurance producer is in compliance with the insurer's standards for product training. An insurance producer may rely on insurer- provided product-specific training standards and materials to comply with the requirements of this Subsection.

B.(1)(a) An insurance producer who engages in the sale of annuity products shall complete a one-time four-credit training course approved by the Department of Insurance and provided by an educator who has been approved by the Department of Insurance.

(b) Insurance producers who hold a life insurance line of authority on August 15, 2012, and who desire to sell annuities shall complete the requirement of this Subsection no later than January 1, 2013. An individual who holds a life insurance line of authority and has satisfied the training requirements in another state with substantially similar requirements prior to January 1, 2013, shall be deemed to have satisfied the training requirements of this state. Individuals who obtain a life insurance line of authority on or after August 15, 2012, may not engage in the sale of annuities until the annuity training course required pursuant to this Subsection has been completed.

(2) The minimum length of the training required pursuant to this Subsection shall be sufficient to qualify for at least four continuing education credits, but may be longer.

(3) The training required pursuant to this Subsection shall include information on the following topics:

(a) The types of annuities and various classifications of annuities.

(b) Identification of the parties to an annuity.

(c) A description of how fixed, variable, and indexed annuity contract provisions affect consumers.

(d) The application of income taxation of qualified and nonqualified annuities.

(e) The primary use of annuities.

(f) Appropriate sales practices, replacement, and disclosure requirements.

(4) Providers of courses intended to comply with this Subsection shall cover all topics listed in Paragraph (3) of this Subsection and shall not present any marketing information or provide training on sales techniques or specific information about a particular insurer's products. Additional topics may be offered in addition to the topics required by this Subsection.

(5) A provider of an annuity training course intended to comply with this Subsection shall register as a continuing education provider in this state and shall comply with the rules and guidelines applicable to insurance producer continuing education courses pursuant to LAC 37:XI.701 et seq.

(6) Annuity training courses may be conducted and completed by classroom or by verifiable self-study methods pursuant to LAC 37:XI.701 et seq.

(7) Providers of annuity training shall comply with the reporting requirements and shall issue certificates of completion pursuant to LAC 37:XI.701 et seq.

(8) The satisfaction of the training requirements of another state which has standards which are substantially similar to the provisions of this Subsection shall be deemed to satisfy the training requirements of this Subsection in this state.

(9) An insurer shall verify that an insurance producer has completed the annuity training course required by this Subsection before allowing the insurance producer to sell an annuity product for that insurer. An insurer may satisfy its responsibility under this Paragraph by obtaining certificates of completion of the training course by the insurance producer or by obtaining reports provided by commissioner database systems.

Acts 2012, No. 612, §1.