safety margin
In life insurance, the safety margin is the amount by which actuaries increase the probability of mortality for each age group in a mortality table. The safety margin helps protect the insurance company from adverse experience.

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salaried sales agents
Insurance sales representatives who are employees of the insurer and who are usually paid on a salary plus incentive compensation basis. Salaried sales personnel may work with other agents or independently, may make sales directly to consumers or promote the sale of an insurer's products through other intermediaries, and are often used to distribute group insurance and pension products. Also known as salaried sales representatives.

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salaried sales distribution system
A distribution system that uses salaried employees of the insurance company to sell and service policies. Salaried sales personnel may work either with agents or independently and are often used to distribute group insurance products.

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salary continuation plan
A disability or sick-leave plan which provides for employees to continue to receive up to 100 percent of their salary for a limited number of days if they become ill or disabled. The number of days per year granted to an employee generally increases as the employee's length of service increases. Most such plans are self-insured. Also known as a sick-leave plan.

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salary-reduction plan
A plan whereby an employee authorizes the employer to reduce the amount of compensation that the employee receives in cash and to contribute the difference to a group insurance, pension or other employee-benefit plan.

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sales illustration
A graphic representation used by an agent to help explain an insurance product to a potential customer. Sales illustrations often consist of numeric charts describing the customer's goals and the cost elements and mechanics of the insurance product being proposed. Sometimes simply called an illustration.

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savings bank life insurance (SBLI)
In the United States, life insurance coverage sold by authorized savings banks to people who live or work in the state in which the insurance is sold. Savings bank life insurance is permitted in three states -- Massachusetts, New York, and Connecticut.

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savings plan
A defined contribution plan offered by an employer or other plan sponsor to give employees/participants a vehicle for investing funds for retirement or other needs. Most plans feature employer matching of employee contributions, and plan participation is voluntary. Also known as a thrift plan.

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scheduled dental plan
A dental plan which pays fixed benefits for specific procedures according to a schedule. See also combination dental plan and unscheduled dental plan.

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second-to-die life insurance
See survivorship life insurance.

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Section 79
Section 79 of the United States Internal Revenue Code, which provides that employer contributions to purchase group term life insurance receive preferable tax treatment. It also gives a list of specifications which a plan must meet in order to be considered a nondiscriminatory group term insurance plan for tax purposes.

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Section 401(k) Plan
In the United States, a qualified cash or deferred profit-sharing or stock-bonus plan which allows participants to decide how much of their compensation is deferred. Participant contributions are not taxable until the funds are withdrawn, and sponsor contributions as well as investment earnings are also tax-deferred to the participant. Also called a Cash or Deferred Arrangement (CODA).

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Section 403(b)
Plan in the United States, a type of employee retirement plan established by certain tax-exempt organizations (i.e., hospitals, charities, churches) and educational organizations. Section 403(b) plans were created by Congress to serve as an incentive for tax-exempt organizations (who could not benefit from the tax advantages of qualified pension plans) to offer their employees some form of retirement compensation. Also known as a tax-deferred annuity (TDA) plan or a tax-sheltered annuity (TSA) plan.

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Section 415 limits
In the United States, limits placed on the amount of annual additions (contributions) that can be made on behalf of a defined contribution plan participant or the amount of benefits that can be paid to a participant in a defined benefit plan. These limits are determined under Section 415 of the Internal Revenue Code. See also contribution limit and maximum benefit.

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Section 3460
In Canada, a set of recommendations contained in section 3460 of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accounts (CICA) Handbook which concerns employers' accounting for pension costs and obligations. Section 3460 recommends that, for defined benefit plans, the projected benefit method be used to determine pension costs for accounting purposes.

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segmentation
A process by which an insurer divides its general account investments into distinct parts, or segments, that correspond with each of the insurer's major lines of business. For example, one segment can be used to account for group life insurance investments, while another can be used to account for individual life insurance investments.

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segregated account
In Canada, an asset account that stands apart from a company's general account. Called a separate account in the United States. See also separate account.

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self-administered group insurance plan
Under this type of group insurance plan, the group policyholder rather than the insurer performs most of the administrative work for the plan. The policyholder maintains detailed records of group membership, processes routine requests, such as requests for beneficiary changes and name and address changes, prepares its own premium statements, and, in some cases, prepares certificates for new group members.

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self-insured group insurance
A form of group insurance in which the group sponsor, not an insurance company, is financially responsible for paying claims made by group insureds. A group may be partially or fully self-insured. See also administrative services only (ASO) contract.

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separate account
An account maintained separately from a life insurance company's general accounts to help manage the funds used for nonguaranteed insurance products. By maintaining separate accounts, insurance companies are able to modify some of their investment strategies without affecting the funds in the general accounts. Called a segregated account in Canada. See also general account and investment-sensitive life insurance.

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separate account contract
A pension plan funding vehicle in which a pension's assets are invested through an insurer's separate account. A separate account contract usually does not guarantee investment performance. Also called an investment facility contract.

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settlement
(1) See financial settlement. (2) In the United States, an irrevocable action that relieves the plan or plan sponsor of the obligation for a pension benefit and that eliminates the risk to the plan assets used to carry out the settlement. One example of a settlement is payment of a lump-sum benefit to a plan participant, thus discharging any further benefit obligation to the participant. Settlement is defined in FASB Statement No. 88.

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settlement agreement
The arrangement made between an insurer and a policyowner (or beneficiary) concerning the manner in which the insurer will pay the policy proceeds to the beneficiary. See also settlement options.

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settlement option payments
Periodic payments made by an insurance company in lieu of an immediate lump-sum payment of life insurance policy proceeds.

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settlement options
Choices given to the policyowner or the beneficiary of a life insurance policy regarding the method by which the insurer will pay policy proceeds. Also known as optional modes of settlement. See also fixed amount option, fixed period option, interest option, joint and survivorship option, life income option, life income option with period certain, life income option with refund, and straight life income option.

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settlement option table
A table showing the various amounts that the insurance company will pay as periodic payments in the settlement of a life insurance policy.

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short-form reinstatement application
A reinstatement application that asks a few questions designed to guard against reinstatements by insureds whose conditions have changed drastically since the premium due date. A short-form reinstatement application is generally used for reinstatements requested within a comparatively short period, such as 30 to 90 days, after the end of the grace period.

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short-term disability income insurance
Disability income insurance which provides a benefit for a short disability or for the first part of a long disability. See also disability income insurance, long-term disability income insurance, and weekly indemnity plan.

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simplified employee pension (SEP)
In the United States, a pension plan in which an employer contributes money to an individual retirement account (IRA) for each employee covered by the plan. The IRA is owned by the employee, not the employer. A SEP is especially useful to employers who cannot afford the time or money needed to administer and maintain a more complicated pension plan. SEPs may also be used by self-employed persons.

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simultaneous death act
A state or provincial law which provides that if the insured and the primary beneficiary both die under conditions in which it is impossible to determine which one died first, the insured will be presumed to have survived the primary beneficiary unless there is a policy provision to the contrary.

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single premium annuity
An annuity that is purchased with only one premium payment. A single premium annuity can be an immediate annuity or a deferred annuity.

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single-premium deferred annuity (SPDA)
A deferred annuity for which only one premium payment is made.

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single-premium method
In group creditor insurance, a premium-paying arrangement for contributory plans whereby, at the inception of the loan, the entire premium amount for the insurance is either paid in a lump sum by the borrower or added to the principal of the loan. Contrast with monthly outstanding balance method.

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single purchase annuity contract
A group contract in which a single premium is applied to purchase annuities for participants in a pension plan that is terminating. Immediate annuities are purchased for current retirees in the plan, and deferred annuities are purchased for participants who have not yet reached retirement age.

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six and six exclusion
A preexisting conditions exclusion commonly used in credit disability policies, which states that an insured's disability is not covered if the insured (1) was treated for the condition within six months prior to the effective date of coverage and (2) becomes disabled from that same condition within six months after the effective date of coverage.

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small estates statutes
Legislation that enables an insurer to pay relatively small amounts of policy proceeds to an estate without involved court proceedings.

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small group insurance plan
A type of group life insurance plan that uses group underwriting techniques but adds some degree of simplified individual underwriting and is designed to cover groups containing 2 to 25 people. Also called a baby group plan.

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social insurance supplement policy
A medical expense policy sold by insurance companies to provide benefits that complement the benefits available from a specified government health insurance program.

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Social Security
In the United States, a program of the United States federal government that provides retirement income, health care for the aged, and disability coverage for eligible workers and their dependents.

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Social Security Disability Income (SSDI)
In the United States, a long-term disability income program that provides benefits to disabled workers who are under age 65 and who have paid a specified amount of Social Security tax for a prescribed number of quarter-year periods.

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sole proprietorship insurance
Insurance on the life of the sole proprietor of a business. Sole proprietorship insurance is used either to pay the salary of someone hired to run the business after the owner's death or disablement or to compensate the owner's family for the loss of potential income due to the failure of the business after the owner's death or disability.

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soliciting agent
Typically, an insurance agent who works under a general agent or a branch manager. The soliciting agent is the person who actually contacts prospective customers, delivers policies, and collects initial premiums. See also insurance agent.

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specified expense coverage
Health insurance coverage which provides benefits for specific medical supplies or treatments or for specific illnesses. Examples include dental expense coverage, vision care coverage, prescription drug coverage, long-term care (LTC) coverage and dread disease coverage. See also limited coverage policy and long-term care (LTC) insurance.

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spendthrift trust clause
A life insurance policy provision that protects, under certain conditions, policy proceeds held by the insurer from being seized by a beneficiary's creditors.

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split-dollar insurance plan
A type of business insurance in which an employee is covered by individual life insurance that is paid for jointly by the employee and the employer. The employee names the beneficiaries. Each year the employer pays the portion of the premium that is equal to the increase in the policy's cash value for that year, and the employee pays the balance of the premium. If the employee dies, the employer will receive an amount of the proceeds equal to the cash value of the policy, while the beneficiaries of the policy will receive the remaining benefits.

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split funding
A method of funding a pension plan in which a portion of the total contributions to the plan are used to purchase an allocated funding instrument while the remainder of the contributions are placed in an unallocated fund.

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spouse and children's insurance rider
An addition to a life insurance policy that provides coverage for a spouse and/or children.

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spouse's allowance
In Canada, a benefit available to some spouses of Old Age Security (OAS) recipients. The benefit is designed to ensure that a married couple in which one spouse is age 60 to 65 receives a minimum monthly pension that is comparable to the monthly pension of a married couple in which both spouses are over the age of 65.

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stacking
The practice of ignoring benefits payable under public pension plans in the design or selection of private pension plans. When no attempt is made to integrate benefits from a public and a private pension plan, the two plans are said to be "stacked."

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Standard Nonforfeiture Law
A law, which is virtually uniform in all states, specifying the minimum cash values required to be provided by life insurance policies.

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standard plan termination
In pension and employee-benefit plan terms, the process of terminating a plan which has sufficient funds to cover all the benefit amounts to which the plan's participants are entitled. Contrast to distress termination. See also involuntary plan termination and voluntary plan termination.

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standard premium rate
The premium rate charged for insurance on a person classified as having an average likelihood of loss.

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standard risk class
A risk class made up of individuals whose anticipated likelihood of loss is regarded as average. People in the standard risk class pay standard premium rates. Most insureds are included in the standard risk class.

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Standard Valuation Law
A law, which is virtually uniform in all states, specifying minimum standards for calculating, or valuing, insurance reserves.

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status clause
A type of war hazard exclusion that excludes payment of benefits for any loss occurring while an insured is in military service. Contrast with result clause.

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statutory accounting practices (SAP)
The accounting methods and principles that apply to the completion of the statutory Annual Statement which life insurance companies are required to submit to regulatory authorities.

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statutory reserve
A reserve that is reported to government authorities, as required by statutes. Also called a legal reserve. See also policy reserve.

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stock bonus plan
An employee-benefit plan whereby part of the employees' compensation is in the form of the employer's stock. Most stock bonus plans are maintained in the same fashion as profit-sharing plans, but the employer's stock contributions are not necessarily related to profits. As with profit-sharing plans, employer contributions are most often discretionary, and the plan may not be intended as a retirement plan.

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stock insurance company
An insurance company that is owned by people who buy shares of the company's stock.

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stock option incentive
An incentive plan for executives whereby an employer offers to sell the company's stock to the executive at a certain price on a certain date. It is in the executive's interest for the company to do well and the stock's value to rise. If the stock's value does rise, the executive may, by exercising the stock option, be able to buy the company's stock at a price below the stock's market value, thus making a paper profit (if the stock is or must be held) or a realized profit (if the stock is sold at the higher price).

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stock repurchase insurance
Life insurance intended to finance the purchase of stock from the estate of a deceased stockholder by other stockholders in the same company. Typically used for closely-held corporations that have few stockholders. See also business-continuation insurance.

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stop-loss provision
A health insurance policy provision specifying that the insurer will pay 100 percent of the insured's eligible medical expenses after the insured has incurred a specified amount of out-of-pocket expenses under the coinsurance feature.

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straight life annuity
An annuity that provides periodic payments to the annuitant for as long as the annuitant lives and that provides for no benefit payments after the annuitant's death.

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straight life income option
A life insurance policy settlement option under which payments to the beneficiary-payee will continue until the payee's death, after which no further payments are made.

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straight life insurance
See continuous-premium whole life insurance.

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substandard broker
A general agent who runs a brokerage shop specializing in finding coverage for substandard cases or selling the products of several insurers with expertise in underwriting substandard risks.

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substandard premium rate
The premium rate charged for insurance on an insured person classified as having a greater than average likelihood of loss. This premium rate is higher than a standard premium rate.

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substandard risk class
A risk class made up of people with medical or nonmedical impairments that give them a greater than average likelihood of loss. Substandard risks pay higher-than-standard premiums.

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successor owner
A person designated to become the owner of a life insurance policy if the owner dies before the person insured by the policy dies. In Quebec, known as the contingent owner.

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suicide clause
Life insurance policy wording which specifies that the proceeds of the policy will not be paid if the insured takes his or her own life within a specified period of time (usually two years) after the policy's date of issue.

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summary information folder
In Canada, a document that is used in marketing variable life insurance products. The document discloses all of the material facts about the particular variable contract and contains certain statements of financial information about the contract's segregated funds.

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Summary Plan Description (SPD)
(1) In the United States, a document required by ERISA to provide information about a pension plan to plan participants in simple language. The SPD must, among other requirements, identify the plan's administrator and those who are responsible for managing the plan's assets, must explain the plan's eligibility requirements and the circumstances under which a plan participant could forfeit his or her benefits under the plan, and must explain the procedures for making claims under the plan. (2) In the United States, a description of various aspects of a group insurance plan which must be provided to all plan participants and to the Department of Labor.

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superimposed major medical plan
A major medical plan that is coordinated with various basic medical expense coverages and that provides benefits for expenses that exceed these coverages.

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Superintendent of Insurance
In Canada, the director of a provincial Office of the Superintendent of Insurance.

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Superintendent's Guidelines
In Canada, a series of recommendations made by the Canadian Council of Insurance Regulators (CCIR) to insurance companies concerning a variety of matters, such as variable life insurance contracts, health insurance contracts, and group insurance contracts.

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supplemental executive retirement plan (SERP)
A nonqualified deferred compensation retirement plan designed to provide benefits for a group of executives, without regard to benefits provided under a qualified retirement plan.

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supplemental group life insurance
Life insurance over and above the basic coverage provided by a group policy. The supplemental coverage may provide an additional amount of the same type of insurance or may provide a different type of insurance. Supplemental coverage is usually contributory and subject to stricter underwriting standards than is the basic group coverage.

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supplemental major medical insurance
Major medical insurance providing benefits over and above those benefits paid by basic hospital-surgical expense insurance.

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supplementary benefit rider
A rider that is added to an insurance policy to provide additional benefits. Some typical supplementary benefit riders are accidental death coverage, waiver of premium, and the guaranteed insurance option. See also rider.

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supplementary contract
A contract between the insurer and the beneficiary of a life insurance policy. A supplementary contract is formed when policy proceeds are applied under a settlement option.

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supplementary contract with life contingencies (WLC)
A supplementary contract or annuity in which the duration of the payment period depends on the lifetime of the beneficiary.

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supplementary contract without life contingencies (WOLC)
A supplementary contract or annuity in which the proceeds of a life insurance policy are held at interest or paid in installments over a specified period.

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supplementary notice
As required by the Fair Credit Reporting Act, notice to a consumer of the nature and scope of the investigation mentioned in the pre-notice form that an insurance company has already sent to the consumer.

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supplementary statement
Under the NAIC Model Privacy Act, a written statement made by a person who has been investigated. The supplementary statement is intended to correct what the investigated person believes to be incorrect information in his or her file. This statement must remain with the disputed information in the person's file and must be made available to anyone reviewing the disputed information.

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surgical schedule
The part of a health insurance policy that describes the maximum benefit amounts payable for specified surgical procedures. See also fee schedule and relative value schedule.

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surplus
The amount by which an insurance company's assets exceed its liabilities and capital.

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surrender charge
(1) An amount of money deducted from a policy's reserve to arrive at the policy's cash value. (2) The expense charges applied when the owner of a back-loaded policy surrenders the policy for its cash value.

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surrender cost index (SCI)
See interest-adjusted cost.

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surrender cost index (SCI) method
See interest adjusted net cost (IANC) method.

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survivor income benefit insurance
A type of group life insurance which provides income benefits if the insured is survived by a "qualified survivor." Usually the qualified survivor category includes only the insured's spouse and children.

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survivorship clause
A life insurance policy provision, inserted at the request of the policyowner, which provides that the beneficiary must survive the insured by a stated number of days in order to receive the death benefit. Also called a delay clause or a time clause.

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