Office of Georgia Insurance & Safety Fire Commissioner

Update 3-23-2022: Press releases from Georgia Insurance Commissioner

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The Office of Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner licenses and regulates insurance companies; ensures that insurance rates, rules, and forms comply with state law; investigates suspicions of insurance fraud; and conducts inspections of buildings and houses to prevent fire outbreak.

However, here are some detailed duties and resources that may be of interest to you.

Consumer Services Division of the Commissioner investigates policyholder complaints and responds to inquiries from the public. Our goal is to answer insurance related questions promptly and to ensure fair and equitable resolution of disputes involving insurance transactions between insurers, agents, and policyholders. Consumer Complaint Comparisons for Auto, Home, Life and Health Insurance.

Hundreds of Georgia consumers have reaped the benefits of Insurance Commissioner John F. King and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ (NAIC) Life Insurance Policy Locator during the locator’s first year. The free consumer tool has matched 3128 Georgia beneficiaries with lost or misplaced life insurance policies or annuities returning $40,798,883 in unclaimed money to those consumers. Check out this link to the Life Insurance Policy Locator Services website to search for unclaimed insurance proceeds. The NAIC link just mentioned can assist consumers in locating life insurance policies and annuity contracts of a deceased family member or close relationship.

Visit the website of the Georgia Insurance & Safety Fire Commissioner to research this source of information most Georgia citizens or residents never have seen….

Different Related news topics include the following:

Fraud News:

These are cases in any county in Georgia that’s related to fraudulent activity related to any type of insurance – Auto, Home, Life, insurance-related investments, etc… Georgia Fraud Investigation Division made 49 arrests in various cases so far in half of 2019 in Georgia.

The Fraud Investigations Division investigates illegal insurance activities that are perpetrated by companies, agents or individuals. Agentsof the Fraud Investigations Division cover a wide variety of crimes and fraudulent schemes. The Fraud Investigations Division also investigates regulatory and administrative allegations of violations of the insurance code, and thereby assists the Department’s Legal Division in protecting Georgia consumers.

How to Report Suspected Insurance Fraud in Georgia

Insurance News:

In the first six months of 2019, the Georgia Department of Insurance responded to 5,688 consumer complaints and inquiries, returning more than $3,000,000 in insurance claim payouts to many of these policyholders. In addition to the money returned to consumers with assistance from the Consumer Services Division, the call center at the Georgia Department of Insurance took52,300 calls in the first half of 2019.

The top five categories of complaints from consumers were:

  • Denial of claim or delay in claim processing
  • Private passenger auto
  • Unsatisfactory settlement offer
  • Individual accident and health
  • Homeowners

Consumers with questions about their insurance claim or policy provisions can call the Department’s Consumer Hotline at 1‐800‐656‐2298 or file a complaint online at https://www.oci.ga.gov/ConsumerService/Home.aspx.

Safety Fire News

This category has news stories about Fire Safety news. This link reflects many arson investigations for Counties throughout Georgia.

Directives:

This link provides Insurance Commissioner issued Directives to insurance companies and official Georgia agencies how to handle insurance claims matters from major storm events and other events affecting all of Georgia and not necessarily any one county. For example, waivers/leniency of insurance premiums due to Hurricane damage; government shutdowns; directions for all insurance companies underwriting auto and homeowner’s insurance in the State of Georgia, what rules all insurance companies have to follow if they sell insurance policies in Georgia, etc,.

Bulletins:

These Bulletins issued by the Insurance Commissioner have dirfferent topics such as:

Public Adjusters, Roofing Contractors and Homeowners – Illegal Offers to Waive or Rebate Homeowners’ Insurance Deductibles – Some roofing contractors operating in the State of Georgia are offering to waive or rebate homeowners’ insurance deductibles — Unless you’re a licensed adjuster, you can’t offer to negotiate with an insurance company or file a claim with an insurance company on behalf of insured homeowners. Also, may a licensed public adjuster waive or rebate a homeowner’s insurance deductible? No!

Surcharges & Multivehicle Not-At-Fault Accidents – Addressed to all licensed property and casualty insurance companies in Georgia. O.C.G.A. (Official Code of Georgia – i.e., Georgia Law) §33-9-40 clearly states that “no insurer shall surcharge the premium or rate charged on a policy of motor vehicle insurance…as a result of the insured person’s involvement in a multivehicle accident when such person was not at fault in such accident.” The statute does not differentiate between new and renewal rates.

I urge you to visit the Georgia Insurance Commissioner’s site at oci.ga.gov and look around…you may gain a better understanding of fraudulent activity you need to be aware of as well as rules for insurance companies and other contractors to protect your interests as a consumer.

References to products and services are not a specific endorsement, but the user must perform their due diligence and investigate whether the product or service is right for them. I welcome any or all comments that would help others.

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