West Virginia Code 33-41-1 – Short title; legislative findings and purpose
(a) This article may be cited as the "West Virginia Insurance Fraud Prevention Act."
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 33-41-1
- Business of insurance: means the writing of insurance, including the writing of workers' compensation insurance under the provisions of §. See West Virginia Code 33-41-2
- Commissioner: means the Insurance Commissioner of West Virginia or his or her designee. See West Virginia Code 33-41-2
- Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
- Insurance: means a contract or arrangement in which a person undertakes to:
(1) Pay or indemnify another person as to loss from certain contingencies called "risks" including through reinsurance. See West Virginia Code 33-41-2
- Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
- State: when applied to a part of the United States and not restricted by the context, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" also include the said district and territories. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
(b) The Legislature finds that the business of insurance involves many transactions of numerous types that have potential for fraud and other illegal activities. This article is intended to permit use of the expertise of the commissioner to investigate and help prosecute insurance fraud and other crimes related to the business of insurance more effectively, and to assist and receive assistance from state, local and federal law-enforcement and regulatory agencies in enforcing laws prohibiting crimes relating to the business of insurance.