Market Conduct Examinations
Market Conduct Examinations
General Information

Arizona Revised Statutes ("ARS") § 20-156 provides the Arizona Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions with the authority to perform examinations of insurance companies. ARS § 20-148 authorizes the Department to utilize independent contractor examiners to perform actuarial, technical, and other professional services.

The Department's Market Conduct Examinations Program consists of

  • "Analysis" or "desk audit" work;
  • "On-site examination" work , and
  • "Post-examination" work, which may include report preparation, follow-up with examinees, and other activities).

When we conduct an on-site examination, we will assign an examination team of one or more examiners to perform the work. An examination team may consist of Department staff, contracted staff, or both. Staff assigned to the examination may fill some or all of the following roles: Examination Supervisor, Examiner-in-Charge, Assisting Examiners, or Specialist Examiners. We will provide the Examinee a letter identifying the examiners authorized to conduct the examination and describing other information relative to the cost of the examination.

What Can Examination Charges Include?
Examiner Fees

For contractor examiners, we will charge you for services at the examiner's hourly rate awarded in his/her contract with the State of Arizona. For employee examiners, we will charge you for services at a rate that corresponds to what a typical contractor would charge for the same category of service. The examiner's hourly rate may change during the examination period. The examiner contract renews annually and some examiners' hourly rates will change as a result of contract renewal terms. In addition, we may elect to use a contractor in a different examiner classification, which could change the examiner's hourly rate.

In accordance with ARS § 20-159 , the Examinee will be charged for examiner services for time spent working or traveling, and the related examination expenses. Charges may include pre-examination selection and preparation, examination, and post-examination costs, as well as other costs of evaluating compliance with Arizona law.

Contractor examiners are competitively procured by the Arizona State Procurement Office. To be able to be assigned to examination jobs, a vendor must have been awarded a contract in response to a Request For Proposals ("RFP"), which includes the qualifications, terms, and conditions for examination contractors as well as a description of the items for which examiners can be remunerated. We utilize contractors from any state contract accessible from the Arizona Procurement Portal.

Arizona Procurement Portal 

Examiner Expenses

Examination expenses include but are not limited to, lodging, meals, airfare, ground transportation, and car rental. The lodging and meal expenses are based upon the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) Domestic Per Diem Rates.

U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) Domestic Per Diem Rates

Examination Invoices

Your invoice will detail the fees and expenses related to your examination. When reviewing your invoice, please note that a singular invoice may contain fees and expenses relating to more than one type of work performed (i.e. market conduct examination, financial examination, financial surveillance, et al).

For a Market Conduct Examination, you must pay the invoiced amount within 14 calendar days from the invoice date.

You can pay by check or you may use the NAIC OPTins system to provide payment.

NAIC Optins

If paying by check, please make your check or money order payable to INSURANCE EXAMINERS' REVOLVING FUND, and send your payment, with your invoice, to

Insurance Examiners' Revolving Fund

100 N 15th Ave Suite 261

Phoenix, Arizona 85007-2630

If you have any questions about an invoice, feel free to e-mail the Accounting Office at [email protected] or call (602) 364-2459.

 

Help Us Complete Your Examination Promptly

Prior to launching a Market Conduct Examination, the Field Supervisor or Examiner-in-Charge may request a pre-examination conference with representatives of the examinee to facilitate the examination process. In lieu of a pre-examination conference, examiners may arrange a meeting once the team arrives on site.

Your prompt cooperation with the examiners' requests for information and access to records and transactions will help to keep the cost and length of the examination to a minimum. Please have any requested documentation ready for the examination team before they arrive on site. ARS § 20-157 requires that insurance companies make records freely accessible to the Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions. Compliance with this provision will also help ensure the timely completion of the examination.

 

 

Market Conduct Examination Reports

Market Conduct Examination Reports 

Market Conduct Annual Statements (MCAS)
  • The MCAS provides regulators with a uniform system of collecting market-related information to help the states monitor the market conduct of companies. Currently, MCAS is used to collect claims and underwriting data on the Private Passenger Auto, Homeowners, Life, Annuity, Long Term Care, Health, Lender-Placed Home and Auto, Disability Income, and Private Flood lines of business. This allows regulators to identify concerns regarding claims and underwriting. 
  • MCAS Scorecards  are produced each year to show the jurisdiction-wide ratio and the distribution of ratios for all companies filing an MCAS in a given jurisdiction. Individual company ratio information is available through the online MCAS application. A company may gain a better understanding of where they fit in the insurance marketplace and what opportunities may exist to improve their performance in a jurisdiction by comparing their jurisdiction-specific ratios to the scorecard for that jurisdiction.

NAIC MCAS Annual Statement's Webpage.

Market Conduct Examinations