New York Insurance Regulator Hands Out Large Fines

New York insurance regulators have handed out some sizable fines in the last several months, including one for $360,000 to a large national insurer that mischarged auto insurance customers.

Clarendon National Insurance paid the fine for violations of state insurance law that occurred from June 2003 to December 2009, according to New York Insurance Department documents obtained by Insurance Journal. The penalty also covers Clarendon’s failure to take steps to minimize premiums errors.

Clarendon — which is a subsidiary of Hannover Re, and currently in the process of being run off by Hannover — paid the fine in March.

It wasn’t the only firm slapped with a six-figure fine.

Illinois-based Hewitt Insurance Brokerage paid a $136,800 fine after state regulators found that the company was allowing some of its unlicensed employees conduct insurance business. The fine covers the period of Jan. 2005 to Dec. 2007.

It is the first time Hewitt has been fined by New York regulators.

Several other companies paid smaller fines for exceeding the number of non-renewals it can issue in a calendar year. Those companies and their fines were: Preferred Mutual Insurance Co., which paid $21,200; Autoone Select Insurance, part of OneBeacon Group, which paid $8,400; Sentry Select Insurance Co., which paid $4,500; and Chubb, which paid $2,800.

In addition, more than 50 agents were fined anywhere from $750 to more than $8,500 for a range of violations and more than a dozen lost their licenses in the Empire State.

Topics New York