Insurance Terms - C
Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984 (CPPA) - (federal legislation governing the activities of cable operators, including the collection and disclosure of personally identifiable information from subscribers)
California Workers' Compensation Institute (CWCI) -
Canadian Board of Marine Underwriters (CBMU) -
Canadian Council of Insurance Regulators (CCIR) -
Canadian Independent Adjusters Association (CIAA) -
Canadian Institute of Actuaries (CIA) -
Canadian Life & Health Insurance Association (CLHIA) -
Canadian Life Insurance EDI Standards Association (CLIEDIS) -
Canadian Risk Management Program (CRM) -
Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) - (pricing model that shows the relationship between an asset's expected return and its Beta (measurement of a particular stock's or asset's volatility) - or, put another way, the relationship between expected risk and expected return for marketable assets)
capital expenditures (CAPEX) - (outlay charged to a long-term asset, such as equipment - in contrast to short-term assets, such as supplies)
capital and surplus (C&S) -
capitation (CAP) - (in the health insurance area, a rate paid, usually monthly, to a health care provider - in return, the provider agrees to deliver the health services agreed upon, to any covered person)
Captive Insurance Companies Association (CICA) - (trade association located in New York City, consisting of captive insurance companies (companies formed to insure the risks of their parent corporations))
Captive Insurance Company - (Company formed to insure the risks of its parent corporation.)
Captive Insurance Company Reports (CICR) -
captive value added (CVA) - (financial benefit to an organization resulting from participation in a captive program as a shareholder and/or an insured)
care, custody, and/or control (CCC) - (phrase in most liability insurance policies that eliminates from coverage damage or destruction to property under the care, custody, and control of an insured - normally excluded from liability insurance partly because would be better covered through property insurance)
Care Providers Professional Liability (CPPL) -
Cargo Reinsurance Association (CRA) -
Carriage of Goods by Sea Act of 1936 (COGSA) - (federal legislation covering the foreign transport of goods to or from the United States and limiting the liability of carriers or vessels, so long as the carrier exercised reasonable care to make ships seaworthy and to handle/stow goods responsibly - the act placed a limit on package or freight unit liability)
Carriage of Goods by Water Act of 1993 (COGWA) -
cash flow return on investments (CFROI) - (earnings before interest, dividends, depreciation, and amortization (EBIDDA) divided by tangible assets)
cash surrender value (CSV) - (money the policy owner is entitled to receive from the insurance company upon surrendering a life insurance policy with cash value)
cash surrender value of life insurance (CSVLI) - (in insurance, the amount the insurer will return to a policyholder on cancellation of the policy)
cash value (life insurance) (CV) - cash surrender value (CSV) (in insurance, money the policyowner is entitled to receive from the insurance company upon surrendering a life insurance policy with cash value)
Casualty Actuarial Society (CAS) - (a professional society for actuaries in areas of insurance work other than life insurance - accrediting body for the ACAS (Associate of the Casualty Actuarial Society) designation and the FCAS (Fellow of the Casualty Actuarial Society) designation)
Casualty Claim Law Associate (CCLA) - (designation offered by the American Educational Institute (AEI) following completion of programs in liability claims and legal principles)
Casualty Claim Law Specialist (CCLS) - (designation offered by the American Educational Institute (AEI) following completion of programs in liability claims)
catastrophe (CAT) - (a severe loss characterized by extreme force and/or sizable financial loss)
Center to Protect Workers' Rights (CPWR) -
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) - (federal agency within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) which administers the Medicare and Medicaid programs)
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) - (U.S. spy agency responsible for espionage activities outside the U.S.)
central processing unit (CPU) - (microprocessor (chip) part of a computer where arithmetic and logical operations are performed and instructions are decoded and executed)
Centre for Study of Insurance Operations (CSIO) -
Certificate of Annuity (COA) -
Certificate of Authority (COA) - (a document issued by a state, which licenses the operation of a health maintenance organization (HMO))
Certificate of Authority (COA) - (in the insurance industry generally, a document/certificate showing the powers that an insurer grants to its agents)
Certificate of Authority (COA) - (a document issued by a state department of insurance, showing the power of an insurer to write contracts of insurance in that state)
certificate of deposit (CD) - (debt instrument issued by a bank that usually pays interest - individual CDs start as low as $100; institutional CDs are issued in denominations of $100,000 or more - can be issued in negotiable and non-negotiable form)
Certificate of Insurance (COI) - (a document providing evidence that certain general types of insurance coverages and limits have been purchased by the party required to furnish the certificate)
Certificate of Need (CON) - (document issued by a governmental body certifying that a proposed facility will meet the needs of those for whom it is intended - such need might involve the construction of a new health facility, offering a new or different health service, or acquiring new medical equipment)
Certified Automotive Parts Association (CAPA) -
Certified Employee Benefit Specialist (CEBS) - (professional designation for individuals with experience in employee benefits, conferred by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania)
Certified Financial Planner (CFP) - (professional designation for experienced financial planners, conferred by the International Board of Standards and Practices for Certified Financial Planners)
Certified Hazard Control Manager (CHCM) -
Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH) -
Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) -
Certified Insurance Service Representative (CISR) -
Certified Product Safety Manager (CPSM) -
Certified Professional Engineer (CPE) -
Certified Professional Insurance Woman (CPIW) -
Certified Protection Professional (CPP) - (certification offered by the American Society of Industrial Security (ASIS) in all aspects of security, requiring passage of security exams and experience in security operations)
Certified Public Accountant (CPA) - (individuals in the United States, licensed by states, qualified to render audit opinions on the fairness of a company's financial statements)
Certified Quality Engineer (CQE) -
Certified Reliability Engineer (CRE) -
Certified Risk Manager (CRM) - (designation granted to individuals in the risk management or related fields following the completion of courses in risk and risk management)
Certified Safety Professional (CSP) -
Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT) - (trust to which a donor transfers assets and that distributes income to finance a predetermined purpose, cause or goal, such as support of a child or spouse - after the trust expires, any remaining assets are donated to the qualified charity that was previously designated as the remainder beneficiary)
Charitable Reverse Split Dollar (CRSD) - (financial technique for providing term death coverage for an entity)
Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) -
Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC) (CFC) - (professional designation awarded by the American College to individuals with business experience in financial planning plus passage of exams)
Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) - (organization whose goal is to establish and promote professional standards for insurance practitioners)
Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) - (professional designation conferred by the American College for individuals with business experience in insurance planning, in addition to passage of exams)
Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) - (professional designation earned after the successful completion of 10 national examinations given by the American Institute for Property and Liability Underwriters, in such areas as insurance and risk management, plus 3 years of work experience)
chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear weapon (CBRN) - (refers to perils (threats to life) from man-made, intentionally destructive, devices that insurers typically seek to exclude from commercial lines policies - less commonly used phrase than nuclear, biological, chemical (NBC) weapon)
Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) - (one of the world's leading and most liquid derivatives exchanges - (derivative - a contract whose value is based on the performance of an underlying financial asset, index, or other investment - futures and options))
chief audit executive (CAE) - (individual in charge of (or responsible for) conducting an audit)
chief executive officer (CEO) - (officer of a firm principally responsible for the activities of a company)
chief financial officer (CFO) - (executive officer who is responsible for handling funds, signing checks, keeping financial records, and financial planning for a corporation)
chief operating officer (COO) - (officer of a firm, usually the president or an executive vice president, responsible for day-to-day management)
chief risk officer (CRO) - (organizational title for an executive-level position responsible for an organization's strategies, objectives, and techniques for handling risks facing the organization)
Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (COPPA) - (federal legislation requiring companies or groups operating commercial websites or online services directed at children (anyone under 13 years of age) or that knowingly collect personal information from children, to provide online notice of information practices and to obtain parental consent)
Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS) - (program which provides health insurance benefits to families of active duty, retired, and deceased members of the military - active-duty military personnel have access to health care through TRICARE)
claim services only (CSO) -
Clean Air Act of 1970 (CAA) - (federal statute regulating the emission of harmful pollutants into the air)
Clean Water Act of 1972 (CWA) - (federal legislation that requires monitoring of discharges into U.S. waters and contains provisions for abatement actions, penalties, fines, and imprisonment of responsible parties)
Coalition of Alternative Risk Funding Mechanisms (CARFM) -
Coastal Barrier Resources Act of 1982 (CBRA) -
Coastal Barrier Resources System (CBRS) -
coefficient of variation (CV) -
College Retirement Equities Fund (CREF) - (entity maintained by the Teachers Insurance Annuity Association - fund essentially serves college faculties and staff, who pay premiums through salary deductions toward a tax-sheltered retirement variable annuity)
collision damage waiver (CDW) - (an agreement with an auto rental company in which the renter is released from liability for collision damage to the vehicle in exchange for a fee, subject to the terms of the rental agreement or a state statute, if one exists)
combined additional coverage (CAC) - (an obsolete auto physical damage coverage term used to refer to hazards other than fire and theft - current commercial terminology refers to "specified causes of loss")
Combined Single Limit (CSL) - (bodily injury liability and property damage liability expressed as a single sum of coverage)
Commercial Auto Insurance (CAI) -
Commercial Crime (forms) (CR) - (a crime insurance policy that covers a variety of criminal conduct, such as employee dishonesty, forgery or alteration, computer fraud, funds transfer fraud, kidnap, ransom or extortion, money and securities, and money orders and counterfeit money)
Commercial General Liability coverage part (CGL) - (general liability coverage that may be written as a monoline policy or part of a commercial package - CGL now means Commercial General Liability forms, which have replaced the earlier general liability forms)
Commercial General Liability Insurance form (CGL) - (liability coverage section of a Simplified Commercial Lines Portfolio Policy (SCLP) which provides for separate limits of coverage for general liability, fire legal liability, products and completed operations liability, advertising and personal liability, and medical payments - form replaced the Comprehensive General Liability Insurance (CGL) form)
Commercial General Liability Insurance policy (CGL) - (a standard insurance policy issued to business organizations to protect them against liability claims for bodily injury (BI) and property damage (PD) arising out of premises, operations, products, and completed operations; and advertising annd personal injury (PI) liability - in 1986, this form replaced the Comprehensive General Liability Insurance (CGL) form)
commercial inland marine (CIM) - (insurance coverage which originated as a form of coverage for goods in transit over land, but which has expanded to include certain moveable property, property under construction, instrumentalities of transportation and communication, such as bridges and radio towers, and computerized equipment)
Commercial Liability Insurance (CLI) - (business policy providing coverage for property losses and injuries suffered by individuals)
Commercial Lines Manual (CLM) - (information manual on commercial lines insurance published by the Insurance Services Office, Inc. (ISO) )
commercial multiple peril (commercial package policy) (CMP) - (a business package insurance policy that provides both liability and property coverage, or other types of coverage, for business and other organizations)
commercial output policy (COP) - (a broad all risks business policy intended to cover manufactured goods during the manufacturing process and during transit - a combination of commercial property and commercial inland marine (goods transport) successor to the manufacturers output policy (MOP))
Commercial Package Policy (CPP) - (insurance policy that is oriented along commercial lines (businesses, commercial institutions, and professional organizations, as opposed to personal insurance) and comes as a package of 2 or more coverages in the areas of commercial property, business crime, business automobile, boiler and machinery, commercial general liability (CGL), inland marine insurance, and farmowners and ranchowners insurance)
commercial property (forms) (CP) - (various forms (standardized policy contracts) relating to commercial property, developed by Insurance Services Office, Inc. (ISO) which define, limit, and explain what property or property interest is covered)
Commercial Property Insurance (CPI) - (insurance coverage on property used for business purposes, as opposed to personal, non-commercial use)
Commercial Property Program (CPP) - (a portfolio of coverage forms, policywriting procedures, and rating rules for insuring the property loss exposures of business entities)
commercial risk services (CRS) - (ISO)
commercial statistical plan (CSP) -
Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) -
Commissioners Annuity Reserve Valuation Method (CARVM) - (term for various methods used to calculate reserve requirements for annuities)
Commissioners Standard Industrial Mortality Table (CSI) - (table used in calculating various nonforfeiture values for industrial life insurance policies)
Commissioners Standard Industrial Mortality Table, 1961 (CSI 1961) - (an industrial mortality table approved by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) as a standard for evaluation, as well as for computation of nonforfeiture values for industrial policies)
Commissioners Standard Ordinary Mortality Table (CSO) - (table used in calculating minimum nonforfeiture values and policy reserves for ordinary life insurance policies)
Commissioners Standard Ordinary Table 2001 (CSO) - (2001 table that replaces the Commissioners Standard Ordinary Mortality Table 1980 as the Standard Mortality Table for nonforfeiture and valuation calculations)
Committee for National Health Insurance (CNHI) -
Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) - (organization of major accounting bodies and industry, formed in 1985 to study factors contributing to fraudulent financial reporting, and which provides recommendations for companies and auditors)
Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) - (independent federal agency created by Congress in 1974, responsible for regulating the U.S. commodity futures and options market)
Community Rating System (CRS) - (a voluntary program for the National Flood Insurance Program's (NFIP's) participating communities, which promotes awareness of flood insurance, mitigation of flood losses, facilitates accurate insurance ratings, and provides incentives for qualifying communities)
Company-Owned Life Insurance (COLI) - (life insurance policy covering the life of company executives, paid for by the company, with the company being the beneficiary under the policy)
compensated intercorporate hauling (CIH) - (a private motor carrier hauling freight for other members of its corporate family under the same corporate ownership)
competitive medical plan (CMP) - (refers to permission given by the federal government that allows an organization to write a Medicare risk contract)
completed operations (C/O) - (under a general liability policy, work of the insured that has been completed as called for in a contract, work completed at a single job site under a contract involving multiple job sites, or work that has been put to its intended use)
compound value interest factor (CVIF) - (future value of asset for at least one time period)
compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) -
comprehensive automobile liability (CAL) -
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA) - (act that makes the liability cost for environmental cleanup joint and several - even if a party is only partially responsible for losses, that party may be liable for the entire cost of cleanup)
Comprehensive General Liability Insurance form (CGL) - (insurance coverage against all liability exposures of a business unless specifically excluded - in 1986 this form was replaced by the Commercial General Liability Insurance Form (CGL))
Comprehensive Personal Liability (CPL) - (liability coverage typically found in a homeowners (not business-related or auto-related) policy for personal liability exposures such as premises, personal activities, pet exposures, some contracts, and certain incidental coverages)
computer assisted instruction (CAI) -
computer-based education (CBE) -
Concerned Alliance of Responsible Employers (CARE) -
Conference of Actuaries in Public Practice (CAPP) -
Conference of Insurance Legislators (COIL) -
confidentiality, integrity, availability (CIA) - (three tenets, properties, or goals of information systems security)
confiscation, expropriation, nationalization (CEN) - (insurance coverage for political risk purchased by businesses that have an ownership interest in property abroad, to cover loss resulting from government nationalization of the property, or other action by the government that effectively deprives the insured of the property or restricts its operations)
confiscation, expropriation, nationalization, and deprivation (CEND) - (insurance coverage for political risk purchased by businesses that have an ownership interest in property abroad, to cover loss resulting from government nationalization of the property, or other action by the government that effectively deprives the insured of the property or restricts its operations - deprivation coverage relates to the risk that a governmental action will prevent use of the asset, such as denying a permit to run a plant)
consolidated insurance program (CIP) - (controlled insurance program) (a centralized insurance program under which one party procures insurance on behalf of all (or most) parties performing work on a project or site)
Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA) - (legislation that provides a terminating employee and dependents, regardless of the reason for severance (except for gross misconduct) with the right to remain under the employer's group health insurance plan for up to 18 months)
Construction Financial Management Association (CFMA) -
construction management (CM) - (a professional advisory service provided to the owner of a construction project with regard to virtually any aspect of the project, including financing, time and cost consequences of design and construction decisions, scheduling, contract negotiations and awards, purchase of critical materials, budgets, and monitoring performance of design and construction terms)
Construction Management Association of America (CMAA) -
construction manager (CM) - (term applied to consultants who advise owners on construction projects in the development and design phases, and serve as the equivalent of a general contractor during the construction phase)
construction, occupancy, protection, exposure (COPE) - (four property risk characteristics an underwriter reviews when evaluating a submission for property insurance: 1) construction - frame, brick, masonry; 2) occupancy - how the building is being used; 3) protection - quality of the fire department, presence of smoke alarms; and 4) exposure - risks of loss from neighbors, surrounding area)
Construction Owners Association of America (COAA) -
Construction Risk and Insurance Specialist (CRIS) - (individual granted a designation after completing a program focusing on the insurance and risk management needs of construction projects and contractors)
Construction Risk Management (CRM) -
Construction Safety Council (CSC) -
Construction Users Roundtable (CURT) -
Consumer Credit Insurance Association (CCIA) - (a trade association for insurers of credit insurance in the areas of life and health)
Consumer Price Index (CPI) - (measurement of the rate of inflation according to a weighted market basket of goods and services that includes such items as transportation costs, health care costs, housing costs, and food costs - compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Consumer Product Safety Act of 1972 (CPSA) - (federal legislation that established mandatory notification requirements for manufacturers of products and the distributors of those products to the Consumer Product Safety Commission in the event they become aware of a faulty product, or part of that product, that could result in bodily injury or property damage)
Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) - (agency created by the Consumer Product Safety Act of 1972 to deal with safety issues related to consumer products)
continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) - (residential communities set up to provide residents with easy access to health care)
continuing education (CE) - (educational course requirement, usually on an annual basis, for many professionals, such as attorneys or CPAs, in order to maintain a license to practice in their profession)
continuing professional education (CPE) - (courses/credits in professional skills/knowledge areas required to maintain an active professional license, such as a CPA)
contract frustration (CF) -
contractor controlled insurance program (CCIP) - (a centralized insurance program under which one party (a contractor) procures insurance on behalf of all (or most) parties performing work on a project or site - typically coverages provided include builders risk, commercial general liability (CGL), workers compensation, and umbrella liability)
contractors all risks insurance (CAR) - (insurance commonly used for construction projects outside the United States, providing coverage for damage to the project under construction, and for materials and equipment destined for incorporation into the project)
contractors pollution liability (CPL) -
Contractors Professional Liability (CPrL) - (liability for/and insurance coverage of contractor activities involving design errors and omissions)
contractual risk transfer (CRT) - (the use of contractual obligations, such as indemnity and exculpatory agreements, waivers of recovery rights, and insurance requirements, to pass along to others what would otherwise be one's own risks of loss)
control technique guidelines (CTG) - (a series of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) documents designed to assist states in defining reasonably available control technology (RACT) for major sources of volatile organic compounds (VOCs))
controlled foreign corporation (CFC) - (an offshore captive (insurance subsidiary or controlled company) whose U.S. shareholders own more than 25 percent of voting control)
controlled insurance program (CIP) - (consolidated insurance program) (a centralized insurance program under which one party procures insurance on behalf of all (or most) parties performing work on a project or site)
controlled insurance program for operations (CIPO) - (consolidated insurance program for operations)
Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003 (CAN-SPAM) - (federal statute regulating the use of unsolicited e-mails for marketing purposes and providing for liability against violators)
cooperative controlled insurance program (CO-CIP) - (term describing a controlled insurance program (CIP) (wrap-up) in which the project owner involves the prime or general contractor in identifying the project risks and determining the best way to handle them)
Coordinated Advertising, Rate and Form Review Authority (CARFRA) - (an entity proposed by insurance regulators in 2000 that would create a "one-stop" rate - and form-filing process for property-casualty (P&C) insurers, in an effort to speed the rate at which products could be brought to market)
coordinated financial planning (CFP) -
Coordination of Benefits (COB) - (arrangement in health insurance to discourage multiple payment for the same claim under two or more policies - with two or more group health insurance plans, one plan becomes the primary plan and the others the secondary plan - in the health insurance area, the arrangement may be called "nonduplication of benefits")
Coordination of Benefits (COB) - (in the liability area (sometimes in the health area) a group policy provision that helps determine the primary carrier in situations where an insured is covered by more than one policy - this provision is intended to prevent an insured from receiving claims overpayments)
Coordination of Benefits (COB) - (provision in group policies (health or liability) that helps determine the primary carrier in situations where an insured is covered by more than one policy)
Corporate-Owned Life Insurance (COLI) - (insurance on the life of the employee, paid for by the company, with the company being the beneficiary under the policy)
cost and freight (C&F) - (one of several standard terms of sale for exports and imports, which indicates that the buyer must obtain insurance separately - only cost and freight are stated as part of the cost, but not insurance)
cost and freight (CandF) - (one of several standard terms of sale for exports and imports - normally means that the quoted price does not include the cost of insurance - the sales price includes cost and freight, but the buyer must cover insurance costs)
cost, insurance, and freight (CIF) - (one of several standard terms of sale for exports and imports, indicating that the sale price quoted by the seller will cover/include insurance costs - the price paid by the buyer includes the cost of goods, insurance while in transit, and all freight charges)
Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) - (automatic adjustment applied to Social Security retirement payments when the consumer price index increases at a rate of at least 3%, the first quarter of one year to the first quarter of the next year)
cost of risk (COR) - (quantitative measurement of the total costs (losses, risk control costs, risk financing costs, and administration costs) associated with the risk management function, as compared to a businesse's sales, assets, and number of employees - the cost of managing risks and incurring losses)
cotton named perils insurance (CNP) - (coverage for property damage by a covered (named or listed) peril, such as fire, to insured cotton during the time period from its weighing in at the gin until its delivery to the buyer)
Council of Employer Benefits (CEB) -
Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers (CIAB) -
countrywide rate pages (CWR) -
course of construction (COC) - (in construction projects, the time period during which a project is under construction or is being constructed)
covenants, conditions and restrictions (CC&R) - (the part of a homeowner's association agreement that stipulates various rules, regulations, and promises by which a home owner agrees to abide when purchasing a residence)
credit default swap (CDS) - (contract, usually involving bonds or loans, in which the seller agrees to pay a specified amount to the buyer, if the bond or loan defaults)
credit equivalent bypass trust (CEPT) -
crisis management team (CMT) - (unit within an organization with responsibility for planning, organizing for, and dealing with major incidents or accidents)
critical incident technique (CIT) -
critical path method (CPM) -
Critical Review of the U.S. Actuarial Profession (CRUSAP) - (report discussing the future of the actuarial science profession)
Crop-Hail Insurance Actuarial Association (CHIAA) -
Crop Insurance Research Bureau (CIRB) -
cumulative trauma disorder (CTD) - (type of injury that arises from the repetition of a mentally or physically traumatic job, or other tasks, over an extended period of time - carpel tunnel syndrome and hearing loss)
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) - (agreement that permits an insurance company to target a single potential client by combining data on that potential client from several other databases)
customer service representative (CSR) -
customary freight unit (CFU) -