A Canton producer wants to charge clients a service fee for taking and submitting their initial applications for individual life insurance. Under ORC 3905.55, this fee is:

Why D is correct

ORC 3905.55 prohibits charging any fee for taking or submitting an initial application, or for processing changes, cancellations, claims, or renewals, on designated personal lines including individual life insurance and individual sickness and accident policies. A fee is allowed only for services on a no-commission policy with prior disclosure, so charging for initial individual life applications violates the statute regardless of reasonableness or insurer consent.

Why the other options are wrong

• A) Reasonableness or market comparison is irrelevant; the statute flatly prohibits fees for initial applications on individual life policies, so no amount can be lawful.
• B) Insurer consent in the agency contract cannot authorize what ORC 3905.55 prohibits; the ban binds the producer directly.
• C) This reverses the rule: fees may be charged only for services on no-commission policies with prior disclosure — not for ordinary commission-bearing individual life applications.

Memory hook

Initial life application = fee-free zone in Ohio.