Colorado § 10-4-415 - Prohibition against anticompetitive behavior.

§ 10-4-415. Prohibition against anticompetitive behavior.

(1) (a) No insurer or rating organization shall monopolize or attempt to monopolize, or combine or conspire with any other person to monopolize, in any territory, the business of insurance of any kind, subdivision, or class thereof.

(b) No insurer or rating organization shall agree with any other insurer or rating organization to charge or adhere to any rate, although insurers and rating organizations may continue to exchange statistical information.

(c) No insurer or rating organization shall make any agreement with any other insurer, rating organization, or other person to restrain trade.

(d) No insurer or rating organization shall make any agreement with any other insurer, rating organization, or other person the effect of which may be substantially to lessen competition in any territory or in any kind, subdivision, or class of insurance.

(e) No insurer may acquire or retain any capital stock or assets of, or have any common management with, any other insurer if the effect of such acquisition, retention, or common management may be substantially to lessen competition in any territory or in any kind, subdivision, or class of insurance.

(f) No insurer or rating organization shall make any agreement with any other insurer or rating organization to refuse to deal with any person in connection with the sale of insurance.

(g) No rating organization or member or subscriber thereof shall interfere with the right of any insurer to make its rates independently of such rating organization or to charge rates different from the rates made by such rating organization.

(h) No member of or subscriber to a rating organization shall refuse to do business with, or prohibit or prevent the payment of commissions to, any licensed agent or broker on the ground that such agent or broker does business with an insurer which makes its rates, or any portion thereof, independently of such rating organization.

(i) Nothing in this part 4 shall be construed as requiring any insurer to become a member of or a subscriber to any rating organization, or as preventing any insurer, while a member of or subscriber to a rating organization, from making its own rates for any kind, subdivision, or class of insurance, for which it does not elect to authorize the rating organization to act on its behalf.

(j) Any insurer which is a member of or subscriber to a rating organization may make its own rates for any kind, subdivision, or class of insurance. No rating organization shall have authority to act on behalf of any insurer which is a member of or subscriber to such rating organization except as authorized in writing by such member or subscriber, which authority may be supplemented, modified, or revoked, in whole or in part, at any time by such member or subscriber at its option.

(k) No rating organization shall have or adopt any rule or exact any agreement, or formulate or engage in any program, the effect of which would be to require any member, subscriber, or other insurer to utilize some or all of its services, or to adhere to its rates, rating plans, rating systems, underwriting rules, or policy forms, or to prevent any insurer from acting independently.

(2) (a) The commissioner, through the attorney general, and any person injured in his business or property by reason of anything forbidden in subsection (1) of this section may maintain an action to enjoin any violation of such subsection (1).

(b) Any person injured in his business or property by reason of anything forbidden in subsection (1) of this section may maintain an action and shall be able to recover punitive damages not to exceed actual monetary loss and expense.

Source: L. 79: Entire part R&RE, p. 372, § 8, effective July 1.

Editor's note: This section is similar to former § 10-4-404 as it existed prior to 1979.