As used in the New Mexico Title Insurance Law:

A. "agency agreement" means a document executed by a title insurer and title insurance agent that defines the compensation of the title insurance agent and the scope of the title insurance agent's authority;

B. "basic premium rate" means the premium rate for an original owner's policy of title insurance;

C. "business of title insurance" means:

(1) issuing as title insurer or offering to issue as title insurer a title insurance policy; or

(2) transacting or proposing to transact by a title insurer or title insurance agent any of the following activities when conducted or performed in contemplation of the issuance of a title insurance policy:

(a) soliciting or negotiating the issuance of a title insurance policy;

(b) guaranteeing, warranting or otherwise insuring the correctness of title searches;

(c) executing title insurance policies;

(d) effecting contracts of reinsurance;

(e) abstracting, searching or examining titles; or

(f) doing or proposing to do any business in substance equivalent to the business of title insurance in a manner designed to evade the provisions of the New Mexico Title Insurance Law or other laws applicable to the business of title insurance;

D. "charge" means any consideration, other than premiums billed by a title insurance agent or title insurer or both, for the performance of services, including but not necessarily limited to:

(1) consideration for the supervising or handling of escrows, settlements, closings, preparation of abstracts, delivery or recording of transfer and lien documents and disbursing funds;

(2) consideration for services commenced but not completed; and

(3) consideration for title searches conducted for a purpose other than issuance of a title insurance policy.

"Charge" does not include consideration collected by a title insurer or title insurance agent when the consideration is limited to the amount billed for services rendered by a third party;

E. "premium" means the consideration for issuing a title insurance policy and includes the consideration for searching and examining a title when conducted or performed for the purpose of the issuance of a title insurance policy;

F. "available funds" means funds subject to immediate withdrawal by cash or check in a depository account with a financial institution, held in the name of and subject to the control of a title insurance agent, title insurer or third party fiduciary, not including a person or entity that is a party to the transaction, cooperating in the closing of a transaction with a title insurance agent or title insurer;

G. "title insurance agent" means a person licensed as an agent under the Insurance Code [Chapter 59A NMSA 1978] and appointed by a title insurer;

H. "title insurance policy" or "policy" means a contract indemnifying against loss or damage arising from any of the following that exist on or before the effective date of the policy:

(1) defects in the insured title;

(2) liens or encumbrances on the insured title;

(3) unmarketability of the insured title;

(4) invalidity or unenforceability of liens or encumbrances on the property that is the subject of the policy; or

(5) lack of legal right of access to and from the property.

"Title insurance policy" or "policy" does not include an abstract; and

I. "title insurer" means any person authorized under the laws of this state to transact as insurer the business of title insurance.

History: 1978 Comp., § 59A-30-3, enacted by Laws 1985, ch. 28, § 3; 1989, ch. 95, § 1; 2009, ch. 80, § 5.

The 2009 amendment, effective July 1, 2009, added Subsection B; in Paragraph (1) of Subsection D, before "handling of escrows", added "supervising or" and after "abstracts", added "delivery or recording or transfer and lien documents and disbursing funds"; in Paragraph (3) of Subsection D, after "policy", inserted a period, deleted "but not including", began a new paragraph and added " "Charge" does not include"; and added Paragraph (5) of Subsection H.

Severability. — Laws 2009, ch. 80, § 15, effective July 1, 2009, provided that if any part or application of this act is held invalid, the remainder or its application to other situations or persons shall not be affected.