As used in this article:

1. (a) “Actuary” means a person who is a member in good standing of the American Academy of Actuaries, the Casualty Actuarial Society, or the Society of Actuaries, and is qualified to sign a statement of actuarial opinion on loss reserves.
2. (b) “Insurer” means any person, firm, association, or corporation duly licensed as an insurer and operating under a certificate of authority in this state.

3. (c) “Managing General Agent” (MGA) means any person, firm, association, partnership, or corporation who negotiates and binds ceding reinsurance contracts on behalf of an insurer or manages all or part of the insurance business of an insurer (including the management of a separate division, department or underwriting office) and acts as an agent for that insurer whether known as an MGA, manager, or other similar term, who, with or without the authority, either separately or together with affiliates, produces, directly or indirectly, and underwrites an amount of gross direct written premium equal to or more than 5 percent of the policyholder surplus as reported in the last annual statement of the insurer in any one quarter or year together with one or more of the following: (1) adjusts or pays claims in excess of an amount determined by the commissioner, or (2) negotiates reinsurance on behalf of the insurer.

   1. (1) An employee of the insurer.
   2. (2) A United States manager of the United States branch of an alien insurer.
   3. (3) An underwriting manager which, pursuant to contract, manages the insurance operations of the insurer, is under common control with the insurer, subject to the holding company regulatory act, and whose compensation is not based on the volume of premiums written.
   4. (4) The attorney-in-fact authorized by and acting for the subscribers of a reciprocal insurer or interinsurance exchange under powers of attorney.

   Notwithstanding the above, the following persons shall not be considered as MGAs for the purposes of this act:

4. (d) “Underwrite” means the authority to accept or reject risk on behalf of the insurer.