Insurance Company Branding in NY
The Office of General Counsel (OGC) has recently released a new opinion on the use of an unlicensed corporate brand on advertising. This opinion revisits previous opinions on the use of unauthorized trade names and advertising in different markets.
The opinion concludes that an insurer using an unauthorized trade name does the business of insurance without a license in violation of NY law. In addition, OGC indicates that it may also be an unfair or deceptive trade practice as well as a violation of the General Business Law. The opinion reviews previous exceptions to the prohibition against calling attention to an unauthorized insurer, but determines that none apply to the facts as presented in the opinion, because the advertisement intentionally targets NY residents. The opinion concludes that therefore, even if placed in a national publication, the company "would run afoul of the [NY] Insurance Law by its unauthorized use of the brand name ABC Insurance."
The second question was if the company did obtain approval to use the name ABC Insurance would they then be required to list all the companies included in the group. On this point, the opinion concludes: "[T]he use of an unauthorized brand name in an advertisement, without indicating the company or companies that the brand represents, violates Regulation 34 ...[which] provide[s] an appropriate guideline for all insurance companies authorized in New York State."
Once again, it is clear that there are many issues involved with corporate branding in NY and that there remain many pitfalls. This opinion should be added to the list of sources to consult when developing new campaigns and branding efforts.
