Glossary

A recurring clause is a health insurance policy provision setting the time that must elapse between periods of disability for the recurrence to be considered a new benefit period.

Redact means to erase confidential or sensitive information. For example, if a pharmaceutical manufacturer is required to produce records of prior drug reactions reported, the drug firm might "redact" patient names from the reports to preserve patient privacy and prevent plaintiffs' counsel from trolling for more lawsuits.

Redhibitory defects are defects that render the home useless or are otherwise so material that the purchaser would only have purchased for a discounted price had he or she been made aware of the issue.

Redlining is an insurance underwriting practice involving the rejection of a risk based solely on geographical location. This practice is prohibited under the laws of most states as it tends to be discriminatory to minorities.

Redomiciling refers to changing the insurer's domicile. It requires permission from the existing domicile and a new license to be issued. It does not require formation of a new company if the new domicile has redomestication laws allowing a license to be issued to an existing insurer.

Reduced paid-up insurance refers to a life insurance nonforfeiture benefit that provides paid-up insurance for a lesser amount than the cash value of a policy that has lapsed because of premium nonpayment.

Reformation refers to a remedy available to an insurer when an otherwise valid insurance policy does not, as written, fully or accurately express the agreement of the insurer and the insured because of fraud, inequitable conduct, or mutual mistake. When the policy fails to accurately express the parties' intent in such instances, a court may reform the policy to express the actual nature of the agreement between the parties. For example, if a consultant substantially understated his annual revenues on an application for professional liability coverage, an insurer could seek reformation of the insurance policy to more accurately reflect the consultant's revenues and therefore allow the insurer to charge a higher premium.

A refund annuity is a form of periodic payment that provides for refund to a beneficiary in the event the annuitant dies before the total compensation has been paid.

A registered agent is the person or firm legally appointed to accept service of process. Alien insurers must appoint (by filed proxy) the insurance commissioner as their agent, in states where they do business, to ensure protection of policyholder rights.

A Registered Health Underwriter (RHU ® ) is a professional designation granted by the American College of Financial Services to individuals who pass examinations oriented toward group insurance benefits and health insurance for individuals and families. Successful RHU® candidates are those who have completed three core courses and two elective courses and successfully pass all eight 2-hour, 100-question examinations. The RHU® program places an emphasis on major benefit protection laws, including the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).