The superintendent shall:

A. initiate inquiries and conduct investigations when the superintendent has reason to believe that insurance fraud may have been or is being committed;

B. respond to notifications or complaints of suspected insurance fraud generated by state and local police or other law enforcement authorities and governmental units, including the federal government and any other person;

C. review notices and reports of insurance fraud submitted by authorized insurers, their employees, agents or producers or by public adjusters and select those incidents of alleged fraud that, in the superintendent's judgment, require further investigation and conduct the investigations;

D. conduct independent investigations and examinations of insurance transactions and alleged insurance fraud, conduct studies to determine the extent of insurance fraud, deceit or intentional misrepresentation of any kind in the insurance process and publish information and reports on the office of superintendent of insurance's examinations and studies;

E. report incidents of alleged insurance fraud supported by investigations and examinations to the appropriate district attorney and any other appropriate law enforcement, administrative, regulatory or licensing agency and assemble evidence, prepare charges and otherwise assist any prosecutorial authority having jurisdiction over insurance fraud enforcement;

F. assist any official or agency of this state, any other state or the federal government that requests assistance in investigating insurance fraud;

G. maintain records and information in order to produce an annual report of the superintendent's activities undertaken in connection with carrying out the provisions of the Insurance Fraud Act;

H. conduct, in cooperation with the attorney general and the department of public safety, public outreach and awareness programs on the costs of insurance fraud to the public and how members of the public can assist themselves, the superintendent and law enforcement officials in preventing and prosecuting insurance fraud; and

I. assign staff and maintain the automobile theft prevention authority.

History: Laws 1998, ch. 115, § 4; 2017, ch. 76, § 12; 2018, ch. 42, § 3.

The 2018 amendment, effective March 1, 2018, required the superintendent of insurance to assign staff and maintain the automobile theft prevention authority; and added Subsection I.

The 2017 amendment, effective June 16, 2017, revised the duties of the superintendent of insurance by including the review of notices and reports of insurance fraud submitted by public adjusters, and made technical changes; in Subsection C, after "agents or producers", added "or by public adjusters", and after "in", deleted "his" and added "the superintendent's"; in Subsection D, after "reports on", deleted "its" and added "the office of superintendent of insurance's"; and in Subsection G, after "annual report of", deleted "his" and added "the superintendent's".