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April 06, 2006 at 09:59 AM
Aflac Inc. has reached a settlement in its lawsuit charging that Assurant Inc. copied 4 Aflac supplemental insurance policies almost verbatim.
Under terms of the settlement, Assurant, New York, agreed to stop selling cancer and accident policies and two health care indemnity policies with wording that copied much the language of policies issued by Aflac, Columbus, Ga.
Assurant will also pay an undisclosed amount to Aflac that would recoup “a significant part of the cost of the litigation,” says Mechell Clark, an Aflac spokeswoman.
Assurant will soon reintroduce the policies with amended language, a company spokesman says.
“New contract language has been rewritten and the process of refiling has begun for the accident and cancer policies,” says Rob Guilbert, a spokesman for Assurant Health. “As a result of the settlement, we will also begin rewriting certain contract language for our sickness indemnity and hospital indemnity products and begin the refiling process.”
Assurant already has resumed selling revised accident and cancer policies in Texas, he said. It has also filed revised accident and cancer policies in Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Maine, Ohio, Utah and Wisconsin.
The 2 other disputed policies are also undergoing revision, Guilbert added.
