645.48 Duties of agents.

(1) Written notice. Every person who receives notice in the form prescribed in s. 645.47 that an insurer which the person represents as an independent agent is the subject of a liquidation order shall as soon as practicable give notice of the liquidation order. The notice shall be sent by first class mail to the last address contained in the agent's records to each policyholder or other person named in any policy issued through the agent by the company, if the agent has a record of the address of the policyholder or other person. A policy shall be deemed issued through an agent if the agent has a property interest in the expiration of the policy; or if the agent has had in his or her possession a copy of the declarations of the policy at any time during the life of the policy, except where the ownership of the expiration of the policy has been transferred to another. The written notice shall include the name and address of the insurer, the name and address of the agent, identification of the policy impaired and the nature of the impairment under s. 645.43. Notice by a general agent satisfies the notice requirement for any agents under contract to the general agent.

(2) Oral notice. So far as practicable, every insurance agent subject to sub. (1) shall give immediate oral notice, by telephone or otherwise, of the liquidation order to the same persons to whom the agent is obligated to give written notice. The oral notice shall include substantially the same information as the written notice.

History: 1975 c. 371, 421; 1979 c. 102.