California Update Regarding License Numbers on Emails

Applies to: All life agents and organizations under California Insurance Code §§1626 and 1628, including corporations, partnerships, limited liability companies, and unincorporated associations that hold a California insurance license.

Summary: California has issued a notice that resident and non-resident insurance producers are now required to include their license number on all emails involving activity where an insurance license is required, regardless of where the email is sent from.

The new requirement is based on the passage of CA Senate Bill 1242, which amends California Insurance Code §1725.5, which has been in effect since 1997 and previously applied only to business cards, certain print advertisements and written price quotations for insurance products. The amended code intends to “modernize” these requirements, adding emails to the list.

The license number must appear adjacent to, or on the line below, the individual’s or organization’s name, and must be in a font type size that is no smaller than the largest of any street address, email address, or telephone number of the licensee.