Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey today announced that he has fined two insurance companies, The Members Insurance Co. and Universal Insurance Co., $113,000 following a market conduct examination.
Members and Universal, which are licensed to write private passenger automobile and homeowners’ insurance policies in North Carolina, are owned by Auto Club Group.
At the request of the Department of Insurance, Members and Universal agreed to refund policyholders more than $2.6 million, including interest, and have submitted a corrective action plan to address violations found in the market conduct examination.
“I’m happy that we were able to get Members and Universal to provide more than $2 million in refunds owed to policyholders,” Commissioner Causey said. “I’m also glad that we were able to resolve these issues without having to go to an administrative hearing.”
The examination began on May 16, 2023, and concluded on May 2, 2024. It covered the period from July 1, 2019, to June 30, 2022.
Violations included Members and Universal improperly notifying policyholders of consent-to-rate charges, charging policyholders incorrect amounts and taking an excessive amount of time to issue claim payments.
According to the voluntary settlement agreement signed by the companies, Members and Universal admit that they failed to comply with statutory and regulatory requirements and entered into the agreement in the interest of avoiding an administrative hearing.
The fine will be dispersed under provisions of the N.C. Constitution for the benefit of the public schools.