TITLE 27

Insurance

CHAPTER 27-71

Market Conduct Surveillance Act

SECTION 27-71-4



   § 27-71-4  Domestic responsibility and

deference to other states. –

(a) The commissioner is authorized to conduct market conduct examinations as

deemed necessary by the commissioner for Rhode Island policyholder protection,

which shall be accomplished by comprehensive or targeted examinations of

domestic insurers and targeted examinations of foreign insurers, based on the

results of market analysis. The commissioner may delegate responsibility for

conducting an examination of a domestic insurer, foreign insurer, or an

affiliate of an insurer to the insurance commissioner of another state if that

insurance commissioner agrees to accept the delegated responsibility for the

examination.



   (b) The commissioner may delegate such responsibility to a

commissioner of a state in which the domestic insurer, foreign insurer, or

affiliate has a significant number of policies or significant premium volume.



   (c) If the commissioner elected to delegate responsibility

for examining an insurer, the commissioner shall accept a report of the

examination prepared by the commissioner to whom the responsibility has been

delegated.



   (d) In lieu of conducting a market conduct examination of an

insurer, the commissioner shall accept a report of a market conduct examination

on such insurer prepared by the insurance commissioner of the insurer's state

of domicile or another state, unless:



   (1) The laws of that state applicable to the subject of the

examination are not deemed by the commissioner to be substantially similar to

those of this state;



   (2) The examining state does not have market conduct

surveillance system that the commissioner deems comparable to the market

conducted surveillance system required under this chapter; or



   (3) The examination from the other state's commissioner has

not be conducted within the past three (3) years.



   (e) If the insurance commissioner or the designee to whom the

examination responsibility was delegated pursuant to paragraph (a) of this

section or the report of a market conduct examination prepared by the insurance

commissioner of another state pursuant to paragraph (d) of this section, did

not evaluate the specific area or issue of concern to the commissioner or a

specific requirement of Rhode Island law, the commissioner may pursue a

targeted examination or market analysis of the unexamined area pursuant to this

statute.



   (f) The commissioner's determination under subsection (d) is

discretionary with the commissioner and is not subject to appeal.



   (g) Subject to a determination under subsection (d), if a

market conduct examination conducted by another state results in a finding that

an insurer should modify a specific practice or procedure, the commissioner

shall accept documentation that the insurer has made a similar modification in

the state, in lieu of initiating a market conduct action or examination related

to that practice or procedure. The commissioner may require other or additional

practice or procedure modifications as are necessary to achieve compliance with

specific state laws or regulations, which differ substantially from those of

the state that conducted the examination.



History of Section.

(P.L. 2008, ch. 72, § 1; P.L. 2008, ch. 233, § 1.)