Beginning July 1, 1996, every insurer shall adopt a record retention procedure and shall maintain records sufficient to reconstruct a copy of every general liability insurance policy issued for delivery in this state to a Washington resident on or after July 1, 1996.

(1) Records may be kept in any reasonable and customary format, including any photographic or electronic format.

(2) Records shall be kept for at least twenty years following the expiration date of the policy.

(3) The insurer shall maintain the capacity to retrieve records sufficient to reconstruct any policy by name of the named insured(s) as shown on the policy declarations page and by policy number.

(4)(a) The insurer shall keep either a copy of each form of general liability insurance policy issued to a resident of this state so that it can be matched to an insured's record upon request, or a copy of the insured's policy as issued. For manuscript policies, the insurer shall retain a copy of the insured's policy as issued.

(b) For each insured, the insurer shall maintain at least the following information as the insured's record:

(i) The name of all named insureds as shown on the policy declarations page;

(ii) The address of the named insured as shown on the policy declarations page;

(iii) The name of any additional named insured(s);

(iv) The policy number;

(v) The form number(s) or a copy of the insured's policy as issued;

(vi) The limits of liability;

(vii) The annual premium;

(viii) The form number(s) or a copy of any endorsement(s); and

(ix) The policy period.

(5) Records of general liability insurance policies issued to Washington residents and that are in the possession of the insurer on the effective date of this section shall not be destroyed for twenty years after the effective date of this section. The records do not need to be catalogued or indexed to meet the standards of this section.

(6) Records of general liability insurance policies issued by unauthorized insurers shall be kept in this state; however, the records may be maintained on behalf of an unauthorized insurer by the surplus line broker of record on the policy, or the broker's successor.

(7) For purposes of this section, "general liability insurance policy" means a contract of insurance that provides coverage for the legal obligations of an insured for bodily injury or property damage to others. It includes, for example, pollution liability insurance policies and comprehensive general liability insurance policies; it does not include insurance policies relating to motor vehicles, personal coverage such as homeowners, or specialty line liability coverage such as directors and officers insurance, errors and omissions insurance, or other similar policies.