|
Public Act 099-0159
|
| HB3909 Enrolled | LRB099 09722 MLM 29931 b |
|
|
AN ACT concerning regulation.
|
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
|
represented in the General Assembly:
|
Section 5. The Property Fire Loss Act is amended by |
changing Section 1 as follows:
|
(215 ILCS 145/1) (from Ch. 73, par. 1153)
|
Sec. 1.
(a) The Fire Marshal, the director of the |
Department of Insurance
or personnel from any other authorized |
fire department or
law enforcement agency charged with the |
responsibility of investigating
a fire loss or potential fire |
loss, may request any insurance company that
has investigated |
or is investigating a fire loss or potential fire loss
of real |
or personal property to release any factual information in its
|
possession which is pertinent to this type of loss or potential |
loss and
has some relationship to the loss or potential loss |
itself. The company
shall release the information and cooperate |
with any official authorized to
request such information |
pursuant to this Section. The information shall
include, but is |
not limited to:
|
(1) Any insurance policy relevant to a fire loss or |
potential fire loss
under investigation and any application for |
such a policy;
|
(2) Policy premium payment records;
|
|
(3) History of previous claims made by the insured for fire |
loss;
|
(4) Material relating to the investigation of the loss or |
potential
loss, including statements of any person, proof of |
loss, and any other
relevant evidence.
|
(b) If an insurance company has reason to believe that a |
fire loss
to its insured's real or personal property was caused |
by other than
accidental means, the company shall notify the |
Fire Marshal, the director
of the Department of Insurance or |
any other appropriate law enforcement
agency charged with the |
responsibility to investigate fire losses and
furnish such |
persons with all relative material acquired during its
|
investigation of the fire loss, cooperate with and take such |
reasonable
action as may be requested by any law enforcement |
agency, and cooperate
with the Court and administrative |
agencies of the State, and any official
from the Fire Marshal's |
office, the office of the director of the
Department of |
Insurance or any law enforcement agency charged with the
|
responsibility to investigate the fire. Such insurance company |
may request
officials and departmental and agency personnel |
receiving information on
fire losses or potential fire losses |
to release information relative to any
investigation it has |
made concerning any such fire loss or potential loss
reported |
by such company. Subject to the provisions of subsection (a) of |
this Section and subparagraphs
paragraphs (i), (iii), (iv), |
(v), (vi), and (vii) of paragraph (d) and (viii) of subsection |
|
(1) (c) of
Section 7 of the Freedom of Information Act, such |
insurance company shall
have the right to receive, within a |
reasonable time, not to exceed 30 days
after the receipt of |
such request, the relevant information requested.
|
(c) In the absence of malice, no insurance company, or |
person who
furnishes information on its behalf, or authorized |
person, department or
agency as defined in subsection (a) who |
releases information, is liable for
damages in a civil action |
or subject to criminal prosecution for any oral
or written |
statement made or any other action taken that is necessary to
|
supply information required pursuant to this Section.
|
(d) The officials and departmental and agency personnel |
receiving
any information furnished pursuant to this Section |
shall hold the
information in confidence until such time as its |
release is required
pursuant to this Section or a criminal or |
civil proceeding.
|
(e) Any official referred to in paragraph (a) of this |
Section may be
required to testify as to any information in his |
possession regarding
the fire loss of real or personal property |
in any civil action in which
any person seeks recovery under a |
policy against an insurance company
for the fire loss.
|
(f) As used in this Section, "insurance company" includes |
the
Illinois Fair Plan Underwriting Association, and all |
district, county and
township mutual insurance companies.
|
(g) (1) No person shall intentionally or knowingly refuse |
to release
any information properly requested, pursuant to |
|
paragraph (a) of this Section.
|
(2) No person shall refuse to make the necessary |
notification of a
fire loss pursuant to paragraph (b) of this |
Section.
|
(3) No person shall refuse to supply to the proper |
authorities
pertinent information required to be furnished |
pursuant to paragraph (b)
of this Section.
|
(4) No person shall fail to hold in confidence information |
required
to be held in confidence by paragraph (d) of this |
Section.
|
(h) Whoever violates paragraph (g) (1), (2), (3) or (4) of |
this
Section is guilty of a Class C misdemeanor and is subject |
to a fine not
to exceed $100. It shall not be considered a |
violation of this Section
if an insurance company in good |
faith, believes it has done everything
required of it by this |
Statute.
|
(i) A fire department or law enforcement agency that has |
investigated
or is investigating a fire loss or potential fire |
loss of real or personal
property may release to an insurer of |
such property any factual information,
including statements, |
in its possession which is pertinent or related to
the type of |
loss or potential loss.
|
(Source: P.A. 86-1021.)
|