”’J. P. Schmidt, the State Insurance Commissioner, testified on behalf of the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (“Department”) before the House Consumer protection committee on Monday, February 9, 2004, at 2 p.m. on HB 2409, relating to insurance. Here is his testimony”’
The purpose of this bill is to expand the jurisdiction of the insurance fraud investigations branch to include all lines of insurance located within Title 24 and Chapter 386, Hawaii Revised Statutes (“HRS”).
Specifically, this bill will: (1) expand the definition, penalties, and applicability of insurance fraud in a new part of Article II of the Insurance Code, HRS chapter 431, titled “Insurance Fraud”; (2) define insurance fraud violations as including fraudulent policy applications, producer fraud, and fraudulent misrepresentation in insurance sales and settlements; (3) expand penalties to include civil and administrative sanctions in lieu of or in addition to existing criminal penalties; and (4) to deposit fines and settlements obtained by the insurance fraud investigations branch into the compliance resolution fund to offset operational cost of the branch