Florida Senate - 2011                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SB 1694
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Barcode 922322                          
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                   Comm: WD            .                                
                  04/13/2011           .                                
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       The Committee on Banking and Insurance (Fasano) recommended the
       following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Delete lines 70 - 359
    4  and insert:
    5         (h) In all actions involving the Florida Motor Vehicle No
    6  Fault Law, ss. 627.730-627.7407, where arbitration of an
    7  existing controversy is agreed to pursuant to s. 682.02 and the
    8  arbitration decision is challenged.
    9         Section 2. Subsection (3) is added to section 627.4137,
   10  Florida Statutes, to read:
   11         627.4137 Disclosure of certain information required.—
   12         (3) Any request made to a self-insured corporation pursuant
   13  to this section shall be sent by certified mail to the
   14  registered agent of the disclosing entity.
   15         Section 3. Present subsections (10), (11), and (12) of
   16  section 817.234, Florida Statutes, are renumbered as subsections
   17  (11), (12), and (13), respectively, and a new subsection (10) is
   18  added to that section, to read:
   19         817.234 False and fraudulent insurance claims.—
   20         (10) In addition to any criminal liability, a person
   21  convicted of violating any provision of this section for the
   22  purpose of receiving insurance proceeds from a motor vehicle
   23  insurance contract is subject to a civil penalty.
   24         (a) Except for a violation of subsection (9), the civil
   25  penalty shall be:
   26         1. A fine up to $5,000 for a first offense.
   27         2. A fine greater than $5,000, but not to exceed $10,000,
   28  for a second offense.
   29         3. A fine greater than $10,000, but not to exceed $15,000,
   30  for a third or subsequent offense.
   31         (b) The civil penalty for a violation of subsection (9)
   32  must be at least $15,000, but may not exceed $50,000.
   33         (c) The civil penalty shall be paid to the Insurance
   34  Regulatory Trust Fund within the Department of Financial
   35  Services and used by the department for the investigation and
   36  prosecution of insurance fraud.
   37         (d) This subsection does not prohibit a state attorney from
   38  entering into a written agreement in which the person charged
   39  with the violation does not admit to or deny the charges but
   40  consents to payment of the civil penalty.
   41  
   42  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
   43         And the title is amended as follows:
   44         Delete lines 10 - 44
   45  and insert:
   46         amending s. 817.234, F.S.; providing civil penalties
   47         for fraudulent insurance claims involving motor
   48         vehicle insurance; providing an effective date.