MIB Group

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Not to be confused with Motor Insurers' Bureau.
MIB Group
TypeMutual-benefit, not-for-profit corporation.
IndustryLife insurance
Health insurance
Founded1902
Headquarters
Braintree, Massachusetts
,
United States
Area served
United States, Canada
ProductsMIB Cross Check, MIB Life Index
ServicesMIB Checking Service, Insurance Activity Index, Follow-Up Service Plan-F
SubsidiariesMIB, Inc., MIB Solutions, Inc.
Website[1]

MIB Group, Inc. or MIB (formerly the Medical Information Bureau) is a membership corporation owned by approximately 430 member insurance companies in the United States and Canada. Formed in 1902 and based in Braintree, Massachusetts, MIB provides services designed to protect insurers, policyholders, and applicants from attempts to conceal or omit information material to underwriting life & health insurance.[1]

Mission and business model[]

A censored copy of a real letter from MIB Group in the year 2017 in response to a Fair Credit Reporting Act disclosure request, stating that no record was found, and explaining the circumstances in which a consumer would or would not have a file with MIB Group.

MIB's mission is to uncover errors, omissions, misrepresentations on insurance applications to reduce fraud and anti-selection or adverse selection so companies can offer and consumers can purchase affordable life insurance protection. MIB Group, Inc. is a member-owned corporation that has operated on a not-for-profit basis in the United States and Canada since 1902. MIB's Underwriting Services are used exclusively by MIB's member life and health insurance companies to assess an individual's risk and eligibility during the underwriting of life, health, disability income, critical illness, and long-term care insurance policies. These services "alert" underwriters to errors, omissions or misrepresentations made on insurance applications.[2] The information must be verified by a reliable source prior to any underwriting action being taken. MIB's subsidiaries offer other business services to members and customers in addition to MIB's Underwriting Services.[3]

The applicant authorizes MIB member insurance companies to search MIB, and as a result, the insurer may report certain medical conditions that impact a person's health or longevity, impacting risk assessment by the company.[4] MIB's database does not contain actual medical records. Information is gathered from an underwriting investigation that may include: information from the applicant's medical questionnaire (application), relevant information from the applicant's attending physician, notice of adverse lab test results (non-specific flag as to values), and DMV information. When MIB member insurance companies report to MIB and receive information from MIB, it is done in codes to protect the consumer's privacy. MIB reports are regulated by the Fair Credit Reporting Act and consumers (US and Canadian) can request disclosure of their MIB report, should they have one, for free once each year (visit www.mib.com for complete disclosure information). Consumers can request an additional free copy only after they have had an adverse action taken against them by an insurance company after applying for an insurance policy.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, MIB's member companies account for 99 percent of the individual life insurance policies and 80 percent of all health and disability policies issued in the United States and Canada.[5] Under the FCRA, MIB is categorized as a "nationwide specialty consumer reporting agency" and must provide annual disclosure of an MIB report to all consumers who request their files.[1] Pictured is a censored copy of a real letter from MIB Group in response to a such a free annual FCRA disclosure request.

History[]

Once known as the "Medical Information Bureau" MIB was organized in 1902 to provide fraud protection services to insurers.[6]

From 1902 through 1945, MIB was governed by a sub-committee of the Association of Life Insurance Medical Directors of America (ALIMDA). In 1946, MIB was established as an unincorporated association under New York law and, in 1978, it became a Delaware membership corporation.[7]

On 16 June 2020, MIB reached an arrangement with Midwest Health Connection (MHC) to make its electronic medical records accessible to MIB's 400 U.S. insurer members underwriting life insurance using the MIB EHR.[8]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b "MIB Group, Inc. Consumer Guide". mib.com. Archived from the original on 6 August 2011. Retrieved 10 February 2011.
  2. ^ Carrns, Ann (15 January 2014). "Consumers Can Check on Data Beyond Their Credit Reports". New York Times.
  3. ^ "mib.com – Home". www.mib.com. Retrieved 2016-08-08.
  4. ^ Hinerman, Ed. "Is MIB the Life Insurance Bad Guy or Good Guy?". Hinerman Group.
  5. ^ "Nation's Largest Insurance Reporting Agency Agrees To Expand Consumer Rights". Ftc.gov. 2011-06-24. Archived from the original on 2013-10-04. Retrieved 2013-10-02.
  6. ^ "MIB Group – History of MIB" Archived April 12, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ Littell, Bob (2000-02-07). "The Mysterious MIB – Not Any More". The National Underwriter. Archived from the original on 2006-07-05. Retrieved 2006-08-04.
  8. ^ "MIB Partners with the Midwest Health Connection". Cision PRNewswire. 16 June 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020.

External links[]

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Government document: "http://www.ftc.gov/opa/1995/06/mib.htm".

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