Kreidler disciplines insurance industry for law violations
OLYMPIA, Wash. – Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler took disciplinary action in July, August and September against insurance companies, agents and brokers who violated state insurance regulations. A summary of cases of interest to Washington consumers is below.
Agents and brokers
Van Hipp, Napavine, Wash.; license revoked, order 19-0238
A consumer filed a complaint with Kreidler’s office about Hipp’s dealings with an elderly relative. Kreidler’s investigation found that Hipp attempted to sell 22 annuities and other insurance policies to the consumer from August 2010 to October 2013, incurring $25,313 in surrender charges to the consumer. The investigation found 11 of the applications contained false information in order to meet requirements for the sale of the annuities. Hipp received $53,104 in commissions for all of the transactions.
Daniel Winger, Bonney Lake, Wash.; license revoked and fined $2,500, order 19-0379
Primerica Life Insurance Co. reported to Kreidler’s office that it terminated Winger’s appointment to sell insurance because it determined that he misappropriated $100,000 from an elderly policyholder from 2015 to 2018. The policyholder’s son reported the missing money from his mother’s bank account, and Winger repaid all but $100 of the money in August 2018.
Leta Marie Cannon, Spanaway, Wash.; license revoked, order 19-0356
State Farm reported to Kreidler’s investigators that Cannon had been terminated from her employment at an insurance agency. The investigation found that Cannon manipulated and falsified information on auto insurance applications to lower policyholders’ premiums.
Robert Haun, Kennewick, Wash.; license revoked, order 19-0344
Haun, a licensed insurance producer, owns an insurance agency that is not licensed to operate in Washington state. Insurance agencies must also be licensed and it is illegal to sell through an unlicensed agency.
Travis Carlin Smith, Issaquah; license revoked, order 19-0351
Smith applied for a Washington state insurance producer license and never paid the filing fee after repeated attempts to contact him.
Jessica Fraidenberg, Vancouver, Wash.; license revoked, order 19-0352
Fraidenberg applied for a Washington state insurance producer license and never paid the filing fee after repeated attempts to contact her.
Xintian Huang, Seattle; license revoked, order 19-0340
Huang applied for an insurance producer license and failed to respond to requests for information.
Agentra, LLC, Dallas; ordered to cease and desist, order 19-0462
Agentra is a licensed insurance producer in Washington state that violated several state laws from November 2016 until November 2018:
Sold 648 policies to Washington consumers that were not approved by Kreidler’s office and therefore were sold illegally.
Sold 835 health insurance policies from insurers that are not authorized to sell in Washington state.
Allowed 127 insurance producers to sell products to Washington consumers without being legally affiliated.
Failed to disclose fees to consumers 1,718 times, totaling $178,666.
Sold 590 accidental death and disability policies to Washington consumers from an unauthorized insurer and via an out-of-state group policy that likely doesn’t comply with state law.
Richmond American Homes, of Washington Inc., Denver; ordered to cease and desist, order 19-0368
Richmond American Homes of Washington is a homebuilder in Washington state. It offered a 3% discount on the purchase price of a new home to consumers who buy insurance through its agency, American Home Insurance Agency, Inc. The discount constitutes an inducement to buy insurance, which is illegal under Washington state law.
Healthy Paws Pet Insurance LLC, Lincolnshire, Ill.; fined $20,000, order 19-0301
Healthy Paws committed several law violations while selling pet insurance to Washington consumers:
None of its producers were appointed to sell for the insurance companies from June to October 2016. They sold 1,283 policies totaling $125,908 in premiums and made $27,508 in commissions.
Misrepresented itself as the insurer in electronic communication and marketing.
Offered discounts to some Washington consumers but not all, which constitutes a discriminatory action.
ROK Mobile, Culver City, Calif.; fined $5,000, order 19-0350
ROK Mobile is a cell phone carrier that sold insurance products including accidental death insurance to 55 Washington consumers. Kreidler ordered ROK to cease and desist from selling insurance illegally in March 2019 and it failed to respond or comply with the order. State law allows Kreidler to impose a fine.
Rachael Jane Glaspie and Triple Canopy Insurance Group Ltd., Liberty Lake, Wash.; fined $2,500, order 19-0303
A consumer complained to Kreidler’s office that Glaspie, owner of Triple Canopy Insurance Group, issued MetLife homeowner and auto policies on his behalf without his knowledge. MetLife found four additional policies that the agency issued without the consumers’ knowledge. The company paid commission on all five policies, then rescinded the commissions when the premiums were not paid.
Fernando M. Ochoa, Auburn, Wash.; fined $2,000, order 19-0279
State Farm reported to Kreidler’s office that it terminated Ochoa’s appointment for using other producers’ credentials and forging their signatures to sell 29 life insurance policies while his appointment was suspended. He also used gift cards to set up payments for policyholders.
Assurance IQ, Inc., Bellevue, Wash.; fined $2,000, order 19-0125
The agency gave misleading information to consumers about how life insurance products were identified. Agents tell people that they “search hundreds of policies” but they only sell Lumico Life Insurance Co. policies. From April 2018 to April 2019, the agency sold 389 policies to Washington consumers with a value of $45 million, generating $403,214 in commissions. The agency has updated their call scripts to accurately reflect how life insurance products are searched.
Hub International Northwest LLC, Bothell, Wash.; fined $1,000, order 19-0388
The insurance agency allowed an unlicensed producer to process 178 transactions in 2016 and 2017 totaling $642,240 in premiums.
Cross Ocean Insurance Agency / Hamza Harun, Fife; fined $1,000, order 19-0400
A consumer filed a complaint with Kreidler’s office after Harun, the licensed producer, failed to add both property owners to a homeowner insurance policy, per the mortgage lender’s requirements. Additionally, the policyholder complained Harun signed them up for a premium finance policy without their knowledge and failed to collected the required policy down payment. Kreidler’s investigators found that Cross Ocean agency is not licensed to sell insurance in Washington state, a violation of state law.
Mark Hermiller, Renton, Wash.; fined $1,000, order 19-0297
A consumer filed a complaint that Hermiller enrolled her in a Kaiser Permanente health plan when she requested a Premera plan. The consumer was out of the country during open enrollment for 2018 plans and Hermiller told her he would enroll her in her desired plan while she was gone. Upon her return, Hermiller informed her that he didn’t enroll her in any plan and proceeded to enroll her without her knowledge in a Kaiser plan effective Feb. 1, 2018, leaving her without health insurance in January 2018. The consumer canceled the Kaiser plan and enrolled herself in a Premera plan.
Vu Nguyen, Tacoma, Wash.; fined $1,000, order 19-0281
Two Washington consumers filed complaints with Kreidler’s office stating that Nguyen applied for insurance policies on their behalf without their knowledge. Both consumers’ unwanted policies were canceled by the insurers at no cost to them.
Tara Iraheta, Graham, Wash.; fined $750, order 19-0327
A consumer filed a complaint with Kreidler’s office after he sought an auto policy from Iraheta but was never given a policy and later had a collision that was not covered. Iraheta told the consumer he had coverage, issued him a receipt for payment and temporary insurance cards. The consumer found out after the collision that he was never covered.
Vidriana Ramos, Everett, Wash.; fined $500 and revocation rescinded; order 19-0456
A consumer filed a complaint with Kreidler’s office after Ramos failed to remit the consumer’s homeowner insurance premiums to the company in 2017. The company canceled the policy, at which time Ramos sent the payment. Kreidler fined Ramos $500 in December 2018 and she contested the fine. She failed to appear at the February 2019 hearing, so Kreidler revoked her license. In June 2019, Ramos asked for another hearing, but agreed to pay the fine in exchange for retaining her insurance producer license.
Kyle Stewart, Bush Prairie, Wash.; fined $500 and revocation rescinded, order 19-0307
Stewart reinstated his license after it was revoked for not paying the licensing fee.
Thomas Davis, Olympia, Wash.; fined $250, order 19-0413
Davis failed to report an administrative action against him in the state of Florida in June 2019.
Patrick Behrens, Mill Creek, Wash.; fined $250, order 19-0295
Kreidler fined Behrens for failing to disclose a misdemeanor conviction on his application for an insurance producer license.
Vardeges Saroyan, Lake Stevens, Wash.; fined $250, order 19-0296
Kreidler fined Saroyan for failing to disclose criminal history on his application for an insurance producer license.
Anel Galicia Pichardo, Tacoma, Wash.; fined $250, order 19-0380
Pichardo falsely reported to Kreidler’s office that she completed required ethics training as part of her 2019 license renewal.
Victor Thompson, Port Orchard, Wash.; fined $250, order 19-0305
Thompson, owner of the Thompson Agency LLC, failed to ensure that a producer’s credentials were disabled and failed to ensure that three policies were signed by the correct producer.
Janette Murry, Tacoma, Wash.; license placed on probationary status, order 19-0353
Murry applied for an insurance producer license. Her license status will remain probationary while she pays off court debt.
