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Delaware Insurance Commissioner
From Ballotpedia
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Current officeholder
The current officeholder is Karen Weldin Stewart, a Democrat. Stewart was elected to her first four-year term in 2008 and will come up for re-election in November 2012.
Before becoming commissioner, Stewart was a vice president with Reinsurance Solutions International, a position she had held since 1997. She owned and operated Weldin Group, Inc., an insurance and reinsurance consulting agency, from 1993 to 1997, and worked as a deputy receiver in the Delaware Insurance Department from 1989 to 1993. Stewart is a co-founder of the International Association of Insurance Receivers, and has served three times as its president. She currently serves as a regulatory coordinator with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.[1]
Authority
The Insurance Commissioner's election and term of office, are established by Article III of the Delaware Constitution.
Delaware Constitution, Article III, Section 21:
| The terms of the office of the Attorney General, the Insurance Commissioner, the Auditor of Accounts and the State Treasurer shall be four years. These officers shall be chosen by the qualified electors of the State at general elections, and be commissioned by the Governor.... |
Qualifications
There are no special qualifications for the office of insurance commissioner.
Elections
Delaware elects insurance commissioners to four-year terms during gubernatorial election years. 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2016 are all insurance commissioner election years. Insurance commissioner elections are partisan, unlike some other down-ballot elected positions.
Term limits
There are no term limits for the office of insurance commissioner.
Vacancies
Details of vacancy appointments are addressed under Article III, Section 9. If a vacancy occurs in the position of insurance commissioner, the governor has the power to fill the vacancy until a successor is elected.
Duties
The insurance commissioner is administrative head of the Delaware Department of Insurance, the agency responsible for regulating and supervising the operations of the state's insurance industry. Besides its regulatory duties, the Department of Insurance investigates insurance fraud complaints, provides consumers with consulting services and arbitrates disputes between companies and consumers.[2]
Divisions
The Insurance Commissioner's Office consists of five major divisions:[3]
Bureau of Captive and Financial Insurance Products
- The Bureau of Captive and Financial Insurance Products is responsible for the following:[3]
- Regulates captive insurance companies consistent with their nature and purpose;
- Provides flexibility and opportunity to captive insurance companies and to persons utilizing them; and
- Fosters economic development in this State through the growth of the captive insurance industry.
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Bureau of Company Examination, Rehabilitation and Guaranty
- The Bureau of Company Examination, Rehabilitation and Guaranty (BERG) is responsible for the following:[3]
- Reviews applications to do business in Delaware
- Monitors the financial operations of the 1,500 foreign and 150 domestic insurers licensed in Delaware
- Monitors the market conduct of insurers operating in Delaware
- Approves or contests their rate filing
- Rehabilitates or liquidates financially impaired insurers
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Consumer Services and Investigations Division
- The Consumer Services and Investigations Division is responsible for the following:[3]
- Provides information on how to make decisions that can lower the cost of insurance and increase the value the consumer receives.
- Assists consumers in resolving conflicts with insurance companies, health coverage providers, and agents.
- Provides arbitration hearings as a low-cost alternative to civil litigation to resolve disputed consumer claims.
- Investigates concerns regarding all types of insurance and utilizes consumer input to review market trends, statute and rule violations, and to develop changes to the insurance law.
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Fraud Prevention Bureau
- The Fraud Prevention Bureauis responsible for the following:[3]
- Investigates property and casualty, auto, life, health, workers compensation, provider and agent insurance fraud.
- Provides a focal point for the anti-fraud efforts of insurance company investigators, law enforcement agencies, and prosecutors to achieve a cooperative and coordinated approach to the detection, investigation, and prosecution of insurance fraud.
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Producer Licensing and Continuing Education Division
- The Producer Licensing and Continuing Education Divisionis responsible for the following:[3]
- Develops and administers tests for entry into the field
- Maintains permanent records on the 33,000 insurance professionals
- Administers the Continuing Education Program
- Provides consumers information about licensing status of a producer
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Compensation
In 2010, the Delaware Insurance Commissioner was paid $102,715 according to the Council of State Governments.[4]
Contact information
Main Office
841 Silver Lake Blvd.
Dover, DE 19904
(302) 674-7300
Wilmington Office
Carvel State Office Building, 5th Floor
820 N. French St.
Wilmington, DE 19801
(302) 577-5280
See also
External links
References
- ↑ Delaware Department of Insurance, "Meet Karen Weldin Stewart," accessed August 15, 2011.
- ↑ Delaware Department of Insurance, "About the Agency," accessed August 15, 2011.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 ‘'Delaware Insurance Commissioner and Department Of Insurance,’’ “About the Agency,” retrieved April 23, 2011
- ↑ The Council of State Governments,"The Book of States 2010 Table 4.11," retrieved April 23, 2011
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