Tennessee Insurance Practice Exam

Taking receipt of premiums and holding them for the insurance company is an example of what type of responsibility?

1. Legal responsibility

2. Fiduciary responsibility

3. Contractual responsibility

4. Administrative responsibility

The correct answer is: Fiduciary responsibility

The act of taking receipt of premiums and holding them for the insurance company exemplifies fiduciary responsibility. This type of responsibility arises when one party is entrusted to act on behalf of another and has a legal and ethical obligation to act in that party's best interest. In the context of insurance, agents or brokers are often tasked with collecting premiums from clients and must safeguard those funds. The fiduciary relationship requires them to manage the premiums carefully and ensure they are remitted to the insurance company, highlighting the trust placed in them by both the insurer and the insured. In contrast, legal responsibility pertains to the broader obligations under the law, which may not specifically involve fiduciary duties. Contractual responsibility would refer to obligations arising from a formal agreement, rather than the trust implicit in holding clients' funds. Administrative responsibility typically involves the management and organizational tasks related to the operation of the insurance business, not specifically the handling of premiums and the associated trust.