Rhode Island Insurance Industry Instructions

EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY, Rhode Island General Law §27-57-1 through 27-57-4 requires that every domestic insurer or insurance company, authorized to issue policies of liability insurance or workers compensation insurance pursuant to this title, within 30 days prior to the making of any payment equal to or in excess of three thousand ($3,000) dollars to any claimant, for personal injury or workers compensation benefits under a contract of insurance, review an on-line secure site web database provided by the Rhode Island Department of Administration, Division of Taxation - Child Support Enforcement Office. Visit www.childsupportliens.com for more information

Insurance Company Responsibilities:

Rhode Island Law (27-57-4) states that it shall be the duty and responsibility of insurance companies authorized to issue policies of liability insurance in the State of Rhode Island to utilize one (1) centralized database to which the Department has reported child support obligors who are subject to insurance claim offset. Insurers must review the information provided by the Department that indicates whether the claimant owes past due child support. Insurers shall access the public web site www.childsupportliens.com first, in order to obtain access to the secure site that contains the delinquent child support obligor database.
The insurer must withhold the amount of past-due child support as reported on the database from the claimant / obligor's settlement amount and send this amount to the Rhode Island Family Court.
The insurance company must provide written notice by First-Class Mail to the claimant, and his attorney, if any, and to the Department ,of the payment made to the Rhode Island Family Court.
Any insurer or insurance company, its directors, agents and employees who withhold amounts from payments based upon the latest information supplied by the Department pursuant to 27-57-4 and makes disbursements in accordance with section 27-57-3 and as otherwise, shall be in compliance and shall be immune from any liability to the claimant, payee / lienholder or security interest holder for taking such action.

Can insurers review delinquent obligor information on claim settlements that are below the legally mandated threshold?

Insurance company representatives are not required to review the database for settlements less than $3,000. However, Rhode Island Child Support Office (CSE) does have the right to subpoena such settlement records under the $3,000 threshold. Instead, we encourage claims adjusters to research all settlements and let the web site automatically alert CSE on those settlements that fall below the $3,000 threshold amount so that State may collect past due child support through their administrative lien process. The Insurance Intercept system does have a feature that allows claims adjusters to easily alert the State in cases where the settlement is less than $3,000. The State will then take appropriate action per Rhode Island law to lien and levy these funds.

How do insurers register to begin using www.childsupportliens.com?

Insurance companies must visit the public web site www.childsupportliens.com and review all the information related to Title 27 Chapter 57 "Insurance Intercept Act". In addition, an officer of the insurance company is required to complete a one time, on-line registration form and confidentiality statement. The State will review the request for access to the secure processing site and grant access to that authorized insurance company within twenty-four hours. During the registration process, the insurance company officer will establish a single password that will be used by all claims adjusters within that company to access the secure site. The system will automatically assign a user ID. The user ID, the password and the e-mail address of the claims adjuster will be required to access the secure site for research. Insurance companies are only required to register their company once.

How do insurers check claimants on the child support database?

After an insurer has registered on the web site, using the user ID, password and claims adjuster's e-mail address, the adjuster is granted access to the secure research site. A new screen is presented to the claims adjuster where he/she will enter the claimant information.

Look Up - the adjuster must enter the claimant's last name, and either the claimant's date of birth (DOB) or claimant's Social Security Number (SSN), or both, in order to search the database. Claims adjusters can opt to also enter their insurance claim identifier or claim number for their future reference in the field named "Insurance Company Case ID". By clicking on the "Search Button" a new screen will appear and display the results of the lookup with the message of either, No Match Found or Match Found. This information is automatically e-mailed to the claims adjuster and recorded in the State's database transaction log. A lookup resulting in a "Match Found" automatically sends an e-mail to the CSE agency. The adjuster will then have the following options:

Preliminary button - the claims adjuster can communicate with CSE that this is a preliminary lookup and a settlement is not due within 30 days. The claims adjuster must perform another lookup within 30 days of any settlement.

Alert button - by clicking on this button the claims adjuster can communicate with CSE that this settlement is less than $3,000. CSE may choose to place an administrative lien on this settlement. The insurance company is not required to intercept or delay distribution of the claimant's funds unless CSE has placed an administrative lien against this settlement. Although companies are not required to offset when the claim payment is less that $3,000, CSE encourages insurers to alert us via this button so that we may collect these funds for the claimant's children.

Proceed to Intercept Worksheet button - clicking on this button provides a worksheet that guides the claims adjuster through the calculations to automatically determine the amount to be intercepted and sent to the RI Family Court. Upon completion of this worksheet, the claims adjuster may either print off a copy of the completed worksheet or e-mail a copy to their e-mail address. After completion of the worksheet, the claims adjuster can proceed to generate the written notices to all parties that are required by law.

Display Notices button - by clicking on this button the claims adjuster will be presented with a new screen that will allow them to update the claimants address information, if it is different from the last known address on the child support database. The adjuster also has the opportunity to enter the claimant attorney's name and address, if necessary, in order to generate the required notices. Notices are required to be sent, by law, to the claimant, claimant's attorney, if any, the Department, and to the Family Court accompanying the offset payment.

Generate Notices button. - by clicking on this button, the written notice is automatically created by the system with the variable fields already filled in by the system. The claims adjuster can then print these notices directly from the web onto their company's stationary for mailing purposes. The claims adjuster may also have the option of using the notice language in a form letter that is generated from their company's computer system.

What confirmations do insurers receive when they interact with the database?

The claims adjuster will receive an e-mail correspondence automatically from the web site with a system-generated confirmation number for each transaction they perform on-line. In addition, the claims adjuster may print out any screen to produce a hard copy for filing in their case folder. All transactions are automatically recorded in the State's database transaction log. Reports of a company's transaction history will be available upon request from the Insurance Company to the state CSE agency.

When will insurance companies be required to start using the database?

Insurers are required to begin using this database for child support arrears offset immediately upon receiving this notification and instruction package. All insurance companies must review information available at www.childsupportliens.com and register for access to the secure research site. If you have any questions regarding this requirement you may contact us via e-mail to contact@childsupportliens.com or by calling 888-240-7488. (Note: The database is located on a secure site that can only be accessed by authorized insurance companies. Authorization is granted after a company has registered on-line.)

Is there Technical Support available to insurers?

Technical support on how to use the Insurance Internet system is available via e-mail at contact@childsupportliens.com or by calling 888-240-7488. All questions on child support policy relating to insurance claims should be directed to the CSE Customer Service Office by calling 401-222-2302.

Is training available to adjusters for use of the Insurance Intercept system?

In addition to the technical support staff available by telephone and e-mail, an on-line help screen is available on the secure site.

What should my company do first?

Access the web site and register your company. Remember - this web site was designed, developed, tested and implemented by your peers in the insurance industry. It has been operating in a pilot test for several months with approximately 20 insurance companies in Rhode Island. It's fast and easy to use. Feedback from those claims adjusters who have been using this system has been very positive.