News News Main Page Email A Friend April 25, 2024 California Department of Industrial Relations and Cal/OSHA Will Honor Workers’ Memorial Day at Four Events in California on April 28th-29th 2024. Cal/OSHA Joining Partners in Arcadia, Richmond, San Diego and San Francisco. April 23, 2024 California Division of Workers' Compensation Launches Online Portal for Submission of QME Medical-Legal Reports April 22, 2024 California Division of Workers’ Compensation Posts Updated Time of Hire Notice April 22, 2024 Sullivan on Comp Launches ChatSOC. It's an Innovative Chatbot for California Workers' Compensation Professionals Integrated with an Authoritative Legal Treatise
| | Allianz agrees to change its use of the Death Master File. Commissioner Jones encourages other insurers to do the same for consumers’ benefit. By Press Release - California Department of Insurance - January 11, 2015
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones today announced a $4.7 million multistate market conduct examination settlement agreement with Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America and Allianz Life Insurance Company of New York regarding the company's use of the Social Security Death Master File database. As part of the settlement, Allianz has agreed to a number of business practice reforms. To date, 16 life insurers have agreed to reforms in using the Death Master database to search for deceased policyholders and make benefit payments.
"Allianz joins a number of other insurers who have agreed to step up and do the right thing for consumers by reforming business practices to ensure the proper use of the Death Master database," said Commissioner Dave Jones. "I urge other life insurers to follow this example by using the Death Master database to identify deceased policyholders and pay benefits to beneficiaries when they are owed."
Allianz will now compare all company records against the Death Master database to determine if there are unclaimed death benefits and conduct a thorough search for beneficiaries to whom unclaimed benefits may be owed. Allianz also agreed to make a payment, which will be disbursed among the states that participated in the settlement. North Dakota led the examination with assistance from California, Florida, Illinois, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania. The company will pay $4.7 million to the participating states. California will receive a minimum of $500,000.
California and a handful of other states are leading a national investigation of life insurers to ensure life insurance companies are complying with the Unfair Claims Settlement Practices Act. As a result, insurers have returned more than $1 billion to beneficiaries nationwide.
The Death Master database, created by the Social Security Administration, provides insurers with the names of people in the United States who are deceased and have social security numbers. With this information, an insurer can identify deceased policyholders and pay out benefits;however, in some cases the Death Master database is only being used by insurers for purposes that only benefit the insurers, such as identifying deceased annuitants and cutting off annuity payments. The California Department of Insurance and its other state partners are working with life insurers to reform business practices in regards to the use of the Death Master database.
#
The California Department of Insurance, established in 1868, is the largest consumer protection agency in California, regulating the $123 billion insurance marketplace.
|