687B.124 - Readability of policies: Flesch test; style, arrangement and overall appearance; index or table of contents.
687B.124 Readability of policies: Flesch test; style, arrangement and overall appearance; index or table of contents.
1. Except as provided by NRS 687B.122, a policy must not be delivered or issued for delivery in this state on or after July 1, 1983, unless:
(a) The text of the policy achieves a score of at least 40 on the Flesch test of reading ease or an equivalent score on any comparable test which is approved by the Commissioner;
(b) It is printed, except for pages which contain specifications, schedules or tables, in not less than 10-point type, one point leaded;
(c) The style, arrangement and overall appearance of the policy give no undue prominence to any portion of the text of or endorsements or riders to the policy; and
(d) It contains a table of contents or an index of the principal sections of the policy if it contains more than 3,000 words or has more than three pages.
2. The score for the Flesch test of reading ease must be calculated in the following manner:
(a) If a form contains 10,000 words or less of text, the entire text must be used as a basis for calculating the score. If it contains more than 10,000 words, two samples, which are separated from each other by at least 20 printed lines, of 200 words per page must be used as the basis for calculating the score.
(b) The number of words and sentences used in the basis for the calculation must be counted and the total number of words divided by the total number of sentences. This figure must be multiplied by 1.015.
(c) The number of syllables must be counted and the total divided by the total number of words. This figure must be multiplied by 84.6.
(d) The results of the calculations made pursuant to paragraphs (b) and (c) must be added together and the total must be subtracted from 206.835.
(e) The result of the calculation made pursuant to paragraph (d) is the score for the policy.
3. For the purposes of performing the calculations required by subsection 2:
(a) A contraction, hyphenated word or numbers and letters when separated by spaces must be counted as one word;
(b) A sequence of words which ends with a period, semicolon or colon, except for headings and captions, must be counted as a sentence; and
(c) Where a dictionary shows two or more equally acceptable pronunciations of a word, the pronunciation containing fewer syllables may be used.
4. As used in this section, “text” includes all printed matter except:
(a) The name and address of the insurer, the name, number or title of the policy, the table of contents or index, captions and subcaptions and pages which contain specifications, schedules and tables; and
(b) Any language of the policy which is drafted in a particular manner so as to meet the requirements of:
(1) Any federal or state law or regulation or any interpretation of a law or regulation by a federal or state agency;
(2) Any collective bargaining agreement;
(3) Usage of medical terms; and
(4) Definitions contained in the policy,
Ê if the insurer so identifies this language and certifies in writing that it is excepted by this paragraph.
5. An insurer may score riders, endorsements, applications and other forms as separate forms or as part of the policy with which they are used.
(Added to NRS by 1981, 927)