Unacceptable Words/Phrases
Unacceptable Words/Phrases
(Excerpts of Title 10, California Code of Regulations, Section 2052.4 [a] and [e]).
No name proposed by an applicant or licensed producer (other than the bona fide natural name of an individual) shall be approved if it appears that use of the proposed name may mislead the public in any respect. A proposed name may be misleading if the name makes use of one or more of the following words or phrases in its singular or plural form or a derivation of one or more of such words or phrases:
1. "A" singly or in a series of such capital letters as the initial part of a name
2. "Advisor" or "Advisors"
3. "Analyst" unless the licensee holds or is applying for a Life and Disability Analyst License
4. "Assigned Risk"
5. "Assurance Company" or "Assurance Corporation" or "Assurance, Inc."
6. "Bureau"
7. "Cal-Med"
8. "Citius Altius Fortus"
9. "Compensation"
10. "Consultant"
11. "Consumer"
12. "Counselor"
13. "Credit" unless the licensee is a Credit Union
14. "Department"
15. "Deposit Insurance"
16. "Excess", unless the licensee holds or is applying for a Surplus Line Broker license
17. "E&S", unless the licensee holds or is applying for a Surplus Line Broker license
18. "Federal"
19. "Government"
20. "Indemnity"
21. "Institute"
22. "Insurance" when comprising the last word (e.g., Great Cliff Insurance) or preceding "Company" or "Corporation" or "Incorporated" or "Inc.", or "Limited" or "Ltd", or "Limited Liability Company" or "LLC", or "Limited Liability Partnership" or "LLP"
23. "Insurer"
24. "Insuror"
25. "Investment"
26. "Investor"
27. "Life" when comprising the last word (e.g., Acme United Life)
28. "Medi" when used as the first part or prefix of a word (e.g., Medical, Medi-Cal, Medifund, Mediplan, and similar combinations)
29. "Mortgage Guarantee" or "Mortgage Guaranty"
30. "National"
31. "Nationwide" (except when an agent representing an insurance company whose name contains the word "Nationwide" and the agent is authorized by said company to use the word to identify with such insurer)
32. "No Fault"
33. "Olympic"
34. "Olympiad"
35. "Plan"
36. "Reinsurance", unless the licensee holds or is applying for a Reinsurance Intermediary-Broker or Reinsurance Intermediary-Manager license
37. "Reserve"
38. "Social Security"
39. "State"
40. "Statewide"
41. "Trust"
42. "Underwriter"
43. "United States", "U.S." or "U.S.A."
44. "Veteran"
Section 2050.1 of the California Code of Regulations clarifies that this list of prohibited words and phrases is "...representative only and is intended to serve as a standard or guideline and shall not be construed as the only words or phrases which when used, or when used improperly, would be misleading or would have the capacity or tendency to mislead the public in any respect."
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