(a) The director or his designee may revoke or suspend the license of an insurance premium service company after investigation if it appears to the director or his designee that:

(1) The license issued to the company was obtained by fraud;

(2) There was any misrepresentation in the application for the license;

(3) The holder of the license has otherwise shown himself untrustworthy or incompetent to act as a premium service company;

(4) The company has violated this chapter; or

(5) The company has been rebating directly or indirectly part of the service charge to an insurance agent or insurance broker or to an employee of an insurance agent or insurance broker or to any other person as an inducement to the financing of an insurance policy with the premium service company.

(b) Before the director or his designee revokes, suspends, or refuses to renew the license of a premium service company, he shall give the person an opportunity to be fully heard and to introduce evidence in his behalf. In lieu of revoking or suspending the license for any of the causes enumerated in this section, after a hearing, the director or his designee may subject the company to a monetary penalty as provided for in Section 38-2-10 for each offense when in his judgment he finds that the public interest would not be harmed by the continued operation of the company. The penalty must be paid to the department and must be deposited by the department in the state treasury. Any action by the director or his designee pursuant to this section may be appealed by the premium service company before the Administrative Law Court.

HISTORY: Former 1976 Code Section 38-39-40 [1962 Code Section 37-775; 1971 (57) 744] has no comparable provisions in 1987 Act No. 155; Former 1976 Code Section 38-27-50 [1962 Code Section 37-1305; 1967 (55) 273] recodified as Section 38-39-40 by 1987 Act No. 155, Section 1. 1988 Act No. 374, Section 15; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 653.