215 ILCS 152/50

(215 ILCS 152/50)

Sec. 50. Examinations and enforcement provisions.

(a) The Director may conduct examinations of service contract providers, administrators, or other persons to enforce this Act and protect service contract holders in this State. Upon request of the Director, a service contract provider shall make available to the Director all accounts, books, and records concerning service contracts sold by the service contract provider that are necessary to enable the Director to reasonably determine compliance or noncompliance with this Act.

(b) The Director may take action that is necessary or appropriate to enforce the provisions of this Act and the Director's rules and orders and to protect service contract holders in this State. If a service contract provider engages in a pattern or practice of conduct that violates this Act and that the Director reasonably believes threatens to render the service contract provider insolvent or cause irreparable loss or injury to the property or business of any person or company located in this State, the Director may (i) issue an order directed to that service contract provider to cease and desist from engaging in further acts, practices, or transactions that are causing the conduct; (ii) issue an order prohibiting that service contract provider from selling or offering for sale service contracts in violation of this Act; (iii) issue an order imposing a civil penalty on that service contract provider; or (iv) issue any combination of the foregoing, as applicable. Prior to the effective date of any order issued pursuant to this subsection, the Director must provide written notice of the order to the service contract provider and the opportunity for a hearing to be held within 10 business days after receipt of the notice, except prior notice and hearing shall not be required if the Director reasonably believes that the service contract provider has become, or is about to become, insolvent.

A person aggrieved by an order issued under this Section may request a hearing before the Director. The hearing request shall be filed with the Director within 20 days after the date the Director's order is effective, and the Director must hold such a hearing within 15 days after receipt of the hearing request.

(c) At the hearing, the burden shall be on the Director to show why the order issued pursuant to this Section is justified. The provisions of Section 10-25 of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act shall apply to a hearing request under this Section.

(d) The Director may bring an action in any court of competent jurisdiction for an injunction or other appropriate relief to enjoin threatened or existing violations of this Act or of the Director's orders or rules. An action filed under this Section also may seek restitution on behalf of persons aggrieved by a violation of this Act or orders or rules of the Director.

(e) A person who is found to have violated this Act or orders or rules of the Director may be ordered to pay to the Director a civil penalty in an amount, determined by the Director, of not more than $500 per violation and not more than $10,000 in the aggregate for all violations of a similar nature. For purposes of this Section, violations shall be of a similar nature if the violation consists of the same or similar course of conduct, action, or practice, irrespective of the number of times the conduct, action, or practice that is determined to be a violation of this Act occurred.

(Source: P.A. 90-711, eff. 8-7-98.)