Insurer response to department request

Sec. 35. (a) Except as otherwise provided in this title, a company shall respond to a written inquiry or request that: (1) is made by the department; and (2) meets the requirements of subsection (b); not more than twenty (20) business days after the date the written inquiry or request is received by the company. (b) A written inquiry or request described in subsection (a) must do all of the following: (1) Be addressed to the individual who holds the position that the company has designated as the position reasonably capable of processing such an inquiry or request. (2) Specify that the inquiry or request is made under this section. (3) Specify the penalty described in subsection (d) to which the company is subject for noncompliance with the inquiry or request. (4) Numerically list the questions to which a response is requested. (c) The commissioner may, upon request of a company for extenuating circumstances, grant a company an extension of the period specified in subsection (a) or waive all or any part of a civil penalty described in subsection (d). (d) The commissioner may assess against a company that does not comply with subsection (a) a civil penalty of one hundred dollars ($100) per day of noncompliance. A civil penalty assessed under this subsection may not exceed three thousand dollars ($3,000). (e) The commissioner shall deposit a civil penalty collected under this section in the department of insurance fund established by IC 27-1-3-28.