South Carolina § 38-78-100 - Director empowered to enforce chapter; request for hearing; enforcement actions; civil penalties.

§ 38-78-100. Director empowered to enforce chapter; request for hearing; enforcement actions; civil penalties.

(A) The director may conduct investigations or examinations of providers, administrators, insurers, or other persons to enforce the provisions of this chapter and protect service contract holders in this State. Upon request of the director, the provider shall make all accounts, books, and records concerning service contracts sold by the provider available to the director which are necessary to enable the director to reasonably determine compliance or noncompliance with this chapter.

(B) The director may take action which is necessary or appropriate to enforce the provisions of this chapter and the director's regulations and orders and to protect service contract holders in this State.

If a service contract provider violates a provision of this chapter, a regulation promulgated under this chapter, or an order issued by the director, the director may:

(1) order the service contract provider to cease and desist from committing the violation;

(2) issue an order prohibiting a service contract provider from selling or offering for sale service contracts;

(3) issue an order imposing a civil penalty; or

(4) any combination of these.

(C) A person aggrieved by an order issued under this section may request a hearing before the director. The hearing request must be filed with the director within twenty days of the date the director's order is effective.

Pending the hearing and the decision by the director, the director shall suspend the effective date of the order.

At the hearing, the burden is on the director to show why the order issued pursuant to this section is justified. If the issuance of the order is upheld by the director, the person may file an appeal with the Administrative Law Court.

(D) The director may bring an action under the Administrative Law Court or in circuit court for an injunction or other appropriate relief to enjoin threatened or existing violations of this chapter or of the director's orders or regulations. An action filed under this section may also seek restitution on behalf of persons aggrieved by a violation of this chapter or orders or regulations of the director.

(E) A person in violation of this chapter or an order or regulation of the director may be assessed a civil penalty not to exceed one thousand dollars per violation and no more than ten thousand dollars in the aggregate for all violations of a similar nature; provided, however, that if a person is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to have been in wilful violation of this chapter or an order or regulation of the director, then such person is subject to a penalty of one thousand dollars per violation with no aggregate limit.

For purposes of this section, violations of a similar nature, which are considered technical and unintentional by the Department of Insurance lacking the requisite wilful intent, are subject to the ten thousand dollar aggregate penalty limit and are defined as a violation which consists of the same or similar course of conduct, action, or practice, irrespective of the number of times the act, conduct, or practice which is determined to be a violation of this chapter occurred.

(F) The authority of the director under this section is in addition to other authority of the director as provided by law.

HISTORY: 2000 Act No. 330, SECTION 2.