{"@context":"http://iiif.io/api/presentation/2/context.json","@type":"sc:Manifest","@id":"https://iiif.quartexcollections.com/ncdcr/iiif/26a95f97-1a41-4d68-836f-7fbaadfefaf2/manifest","label":"Insurance_Department","metadata":[{"label":"Title","value":"State Agency Finding Aid: Insurance, 1920-1962"},{"label":"MARS ID","value":"9"},{"label":"Digital Collections","value":["Legacy Finding Aids Collection"]},{"label":"Identifier","value":"Insurance_Department"},{"label":"Digital Format","value":["application/pdf"]},{"label":"Hosted By","value":["State Archives of North Carolina"]},{"label":"Metadata Creator","value":["Cusick, Aaron"]},{"label":"Type","value":["Text"]},{"label":"Notes Public","value":"If you have questions about this collection, please contact the State Archives of North Carolina at archives@ncdcr.gov."},{"label":"Source","value":"Insurance Records. State Archives of North Carolina"},{"label":"Language","value":["English"]},{"label":"Description","value":"North Carolina enacted laws concerning insurance companies as early as 1803.  From that year until the outbreak of the Civil War, insurance companies operating in the state were assessed a  one-hundred-dollar yearly tax.  Until the establishment of a separate  Department of Insurance in 1899, insurance matters were handled by the  office of the secretary of state.  Each company was required to file an  annual report on its financial condition; the secretary of state issued  certificates to those complying with sound business practices and the  provisions of state law.  Insurance companies without such certificates  were forbidden to operate in the state.  Out-of-state insurers operating in North Carolina were required to  deposit security bonds with the state treasurer for the protection of  their policy holders or the eventual payment of taxes, penalties,  license fees, or other charges that might be owed the state.  In 1877  the state required all companies, both in-state and out-of-state, to   have capital stock amounting to at least $100,000.  No insurance company   was permitted to operate in the state unless it had resident agents   and was certified by the secretary of state to transact business.  A two  percent tax on gross receipts from premiums charged was levied on   companies unless real estate investments amounted to at least one half   of gross receipts.  In such cases the tax was one percent.  In addition   to this assessment, each insurance company operating in North Carolina  was required to pay a license fee for its agents.  A list of license   fees received by the secretary of state was submitted to the state   auditor each month and the fees turned over to the state treasurer.  The secretary of state was to publish an abstract of annual insurance  reports; keep up-to-date and accurate files of reports, statements, and  other official documents; make biennial visits to offices of each  company incorporated under the laws of the state to examine its books;  and visit the main offices of out-of-state companies operating in the  state when reasons existed to doubt their solvency.  In 1899 the General Assembly established a separate Department of  Insurance.  The new department was to perform all those duties previously  exercised by the secretary of state relating to insurance, including  licensing and regulating all companies and their agents, brokers, and  claim adjusters operating in North Carolina.  All files, papers, and  records concerning insurance matters that had been kept in the offices  of the secretary of state, state auditor, and state treasurer were to be  transferred to the new department.  An insurance commissioner was to be elected by the legislature and   serve until March 1901.  After that date he was to be appointed by the  governor, with the consent of the state senate, for four-year terms.  He  was to submit an annual report of his official acts and of the current  condition of the insurance business in North Carolina to the governor.   Biennial reports were to be submitted to the legislature.  Once every  three years the commissioner or his deputy was to inspect the books of  in-state insurance companies.  Records of out-of-state companies doing  business in the state could be inspected as deemed necessary.  The insurance commissioner could apply to the courts for injunctions  restraining the activities of companies not in compliance with state  laws and sound business practices.  Investigations could be conducted by  the commissioner as the result of a complaint filed by any citizen of  the state.  He was also given authority to examine and approve or  disapprove petitions of insurance companies desiring to reduce or  increase capital stock. The commissioner was granted specific authority  concerning mutual fire insurance, real estate title insurance, fidelity  insurance, accident insurance, and credit insurance.  The same session of the legislature granted the insurance commissioner broad powers to investigate the causes, origins, and circumstances of  suspicious fires in which property was destroyed.  Municipal fire chiefs  or boards of aldermen were to furnish information on such fires to the  commissioner, who was to keep records of the instances.  The commissioner  had the power to open special investigations, cause testimony to be  taken, summon witnesses, enter damaged buildings, order the removal of  combustible materials, and secure the arrest of suspected arsonists.   This legislation was amended in 1901 to add chiefs of police to  the list of respondents and permit the commissioner to delegate  responsibilities to a deputy.  In 1903 the General Assembly instructed   the insurance commissioner to require these local officials to make annual inspections of buildings in incorporated towns and quarterly inspections of premises within their fire districts.  Results were to be  reported to the insurance commissioner.  Additional legislation was  enacted in 1905 and 1915 concerning fire investigation, reporting, and  inspections.  The insurance commissioner was to make annual reports of  all fires investigated, the value of property destroyed, the amount of  insurance involved, and the origin and location of fires.  The investigation of suspicious forest fires was added to the commissioner's  duties in 1924.  In 1905 the General Assembly required building and loan associations  to file with the insurance commissioner, providing financial statements  and a list of association officers and assets.  The commissioner was to  evaluate these statements, could revoke licenses if information was  untruthful or incorrect, and could investigate any improper business  activities.  Out-of-state building and loan associations operating in North  Carolina were required to file with the insurance commissioner, make a  security deposit of at least $35,000, and pay annual fees.  In 1935 the legislature authorized building and loan associations  to convert to federal savings and loan associations.  The insurance  commissioner was to approve plans of conversion and continued to have  regulatory authority over the associations.  The legislature made the office of insurance commissioner elective in  1907, \"in the same manner prescribed for the election of members of the  General Assembly and State offices,\" effective at the next general  statewide election.  Two years later the insurance department was  granted additional staffing and a deputy commissioner.  Legislation enacted in 1925 regulated group life insurance plans,  which had to receive the approval of the insurance commissioner, and  transferred to the Department of Revenue the duty of collecting taxes  and license fees previously paid by insurance companies and their agents  to the Department of Insurance.  In 1931 collection agencies were placed under the regulatory authority  of the insurance department.  To do business in North Carolina, such  companies were required to apply to the commissioner, pay a fifty-dollar  application fee, and be licensed.  If the application was refused, the  collection agency could appeal to the Wake County Superior Court.  The same session of the General Assembly created the Compensation  Rating and Inspection Bureau of North Carolina, with the insurance  commissioner or his deputy as its chairman.  The bureau was to maintain  rules and regulations and fix premiums for workers' compensation  insurance, provide information to workers concerning insurance rates  and premiums, and evaluate risks and hazards.  All workers' compensation  insurance companies were to become members of the bureau.  The 1935 session created the North Carolina Building Code and a  building code council to adopt appropriate rules and regulations for its  operation.  The insurance commissioner or his deputy was charged with  enforcing these rules, approving or rejecting applications for  construction, and implementing building standards recommended by the  building code council.  In 1941 the State Board of Health was given  authority over plumbing inspections, approval of plans, and other  health-related matters in new construction.  In 1939 the North Carolina Automobile Rate Administration was  established as a part of the Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau  and under the authority of the Department of Insurance.  It was to  maintain rules and regulations and fix maximum rates for automobile  bodily injury, property damage, and collision insurance, with the power  to adjust and approve rates.  All automobile insurance companies were  to become members of this bureau.  The insurance commissioner or his  deputy was to serve as ex officio chairman.  In 1941 the General Assembly officially titled the insurance  commissioner the \"Commissioner of Insurance,\" and also gave the  department authority over the regulation of non-profit hospital service  plans operated by corporations within the state.  Two years later the  North Carolina Constitution was amended to include the commissioners of  insurance, agriculture, and labor on the Council of State.  As a result of the report prepared by a commission appointed to  study the insurance industry in North Carolina, laws affecting the  Department of Insurance were amended in 1945.  Provisions were made for  a chief deputy commissioner, a chief actuary, and other deputies,  actuaries, and examiners who were to serve at the pleasure of the  commissioner.  In addition to previously mentioned duties, the  commissioner was to file a list of companies licensed to operate in the  state with all clerks of county courts; was to investigate all  violations of insurance law, report them to the attorney general, and  institute prosecutions as needed; and should furnish statements of  insurance law and policy as requested, administer oaths as required, and  designate deputies to conduct hearings.  Insurance companies were  required to attend hearings to answer charges of the commissioner.   Resulting decisions were subject to review by the Wake County Superior  Court.  A North Carolina Insurance Advisory Board was created, consisting  of seven members.  The commissioner was to serve as chairman, the  remaining six members were to be appointed by the governor, initially  for staggered terms and then for four-year terms.  Meetings were to be  held at least quarterly, and the board could consider any area of  insurance and make recommendations to the commissioner.  The 1945 session also authorized the governor to appoint a new  commission of twenty members to continue studying the reform of state  insurance laws and report to the 1947 General Assembly.  As a result, a  number of technical changes were made in the law and new sections were  written on industrial life insurance, group annuity policies, employee  life insurance, and franchise accident and health insurance plans.  The  legislature also redefined the powers of the commissioner in revoking  and suspending company licenses.  In 1949 the insurance advisory board was given authority to promulgate  rules and regulations for holding rate increase hearings before the  commissioner or his deputy.  Revisions of existing rate schedules or  the approval of new schedules were to be decided only after public  hearings.  Constitutional changes enacted by the 1961 General Assembly affected  the Department of Insurance.  As with other Council of State members,  if the office of the Commissioner of Insurance became vacant, the governor was to appoint an interim successor to serve until the next  general election in which members of the legislature stood for office.   In the line of gubernatorial succession that was established, the  Commissioner of Insurance ranked last among members of the Council of  State.  The 1961 session also created the North Carolina Health Insurance  Advisory Board, consisting of nine members, five appointed by the  governor from the public at large and four appointed by the governor on  the recommendation of the commissioner of insurance.  Terms were for two  years.  The commissioner was to serve on the board ex officio.  The  health insurance advisory board was to review complaints against  insurance companies prepared by the insurance department on a quarterly  basis, including reprimands, probation,  and license suspensions, as  it deemed necessary.  It was also instructed to study the health  insurance industry in North Carolina and make recommendations if needed  to the governor and the General Assembly.  The Executive Organization Act of 1971 re-created the Department of  Insurance, including the insurance advisory board, the health insurance  advisory board, the building code council, and the North Carolina  State Volunteer Fire Department.  (The insurance advisory board and   health insurance advisory board were abolished in 1985.)  The state  volunteer fire department had been created in 1939, \"to provide   protection for property lying outside the boundaries of municipalities,  and to render assistance anywhere within the state...in emergencies  caused by fire, flood, tornadoes, or otherwise....\"  The Commissioner of Insurance was State Fire Marshal and Chief of the State Volunteer Fire  Department, which consisted of all active members of organized fire  departments in the state.  Throughout the 1970s and the 1980s the General Assembly continued to  enact legislation affecting insurance law, including modifications in  fire and casualty rate regulations; the adjustment of automobile  liability insurance rates; licensing of life insurance agents; the  establishment of standards for the collection, use, and disclosure of  information on insurance transactions; and the promotion of mental health  insurance coverage.  The North Carolina Motor Vehicle Reinsurance Facility was created in 1973, consisting of all automobile  insurers, in order to assure the equitable writing of automobile  insurance policies for licensed motorists in the state.  In  particular, the facility sought to secure adequate coverage for at-risk  motorists; establish reasonable procedures for sharing costs, expenses,  and liabilities; and establish rules for reviewing claims.  In 1977 the legislature created the North Carolina Rate Bureau to  assume the functions and duties previously performed by the North  Carolina Rating Bureau, the North Carolina Automobile Rate Administrative  Office, and the Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau.  The new  rating bureau assumed responsibility for determining rates for  residential property insurance, automobile liability and medical  payment insurance, uninsured motorists' coverage, and for workers'  compensation and employers' liability insurance.  At present, the Department of Insurance exercises authority in the  formation and operation of insurance companies, enforcing minimum  financial standards for the licensing and continued operations of  insurers, agents, and brokers; regulating the premium rates that  insurers charge; overseeing the risk classification system; requiring  periodic financial disclosures by insurers; providing for audits of  insurers; prescribing and defining what kind of insurance is sold;  providing information to consumers on their rights and responsibilities;  and prohibiting unfair and deceptive insurance practices.  Additionally,  the department licenses and regulates bail bondsmen, motor clubs,  premium finance companies, and collection agencies; offers training to  firemen and rescue squad workers; and certifies fire departments for  fire insurance rating purposes.  The department provides staff support to the North Carolina State  Building Code Council, the Manufactured Housing Board, the North  Carolina Fire Commission, the Public Officers' and Employees' Liability  Insurance Commission, the Arson Awareness Council, and the North  Carolina Building Code Officials Qualification Board.  Other boards and commissions attached to the Department of Insurance  include the Self-Insurance Guaranty Association, the North Carolina  Health Insurance Trust Commission, and the North Carolina Medical  Database Commission.  REFERENCES:  P.L., 1803, c. 630.  P.L., 1871-72, c. 630.  P.L., 1873-74, c. 30.  P.L., 1874-75, c. 205, ss. 1, 3.  P.L., 1876-77, c. 157, ss. 1-6, 10.  P.L., 1883, c. 57.  P.L., 1893, c. 297.  P.L., 1899, cc. 54, 58.  P.L., 1901, c. 387.  P.L., 1903, c. 719.  P.L., 1905, cc. 435, ss. 17-24; 506.  P.L., 1907, c. 868.  P.L., 1909, c. 839.  P.L., 1913, c. 79.  P.L., 1915, c. 109.  P.L., 1924, c. 119.  P.L., 1925, c. 158.  P.L., 1931, cc. 217, ss. 1-5; 279, ss. 1-2.  P.L., 1933, c. 392.  P.L., 1935, c. 104.  P.L., 1939, cc. 364, ss. 1-2; 394.  P.L., 1941, cc. 170, 280, 338.  S.L., 1943, cc. 57, 537.  S.L., 1945, c. 383, s. 1.; Resolution 28.  S.L., 1947, c. 721, s. 1.  S.L., 1949, c. 1079.  S.L., 1961, cc. 466, s. 4; 992, s. 1; 1044, ss. 2, 4.  S.L., 1971, c. 864, s. 11.  S.L., 1973, c. 818.  S.L., 1977, cc. 596; 828, s. 6.  S.L., 1981, c. 845.  S.L., 1983, Resolution 5.  S.L., 1985, cc. 120; 666, ss. 12, 66.  S.L., 1991, c. 681.  G.S. 58 and 58A [1992].  Moore, Bartholmew F., and William B. Rodman, eds.  REVISED CODE OF    NORTH CAROLINA.  Boston:  Little, Brown and Company, 1855.  P. 514.  Office of the Secretary of State.  NORTH CAROLINA MANUAL, 1989-1990.     Edited by John L. Cheney, Jr.  Raleigh, 1990.  Pp. 556, 559."},{"label":"Digital Characteristics","value":"2 pages"},{"label":"Format","value":["Finding aids"]},{"label":"Rights","value":"This item is provided courtesy of the State Archives of North Carolina and is a public record according to G.S.132."},{"label":"Source Collections","value":["Insurance Records. 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