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Michigan’s Insurance Producer Application Background Questions

You must respond to numerous questions about your background as part of the application process, and the Department of Insurance and Financial Services (DIFS) will review your responses. Each applicant is subjected to multiple background investigations by DIFS in addition to the application process. An agency's Designated Responsible Licensed Producer (DRLP) as well as all of the owners, partners, officers, and directors are also subject of application background checks.

Producer licensing is controlled by the following statutes of the Michigan Insurance Code:

Required Information: What You Need To Know

As part of the application process you are required to bring the DIFS the following information:

  • General Background Questions
    • Even if you have someone else fill out the application for you, you are still accountable for the application and the data you provide
    • If you select "YES" in response to a background question, you must submit all necessary information and supporting documentation. If more information is required, DIFS may ask for it
    • Your application may be rejected if you respond "NO" to a background question when we later discover that the correct response should have been "YES"
  • Criminal Conviction
    • All convictions must be reported
      • Military infractions, felonies, and/or misdemeanors
      • Having a decision delayed or withheld (often referred to as a judgment deferred or adjudication withheld)
      • A criminal offense for which you are being investigated or charged
      • Criminal traffic infractions
      • Guilty verdict
      • Offences for which a guilty plea or no contest was made, a probation was imposed or a a fine was assessed
      • A crime for which a suspended sentence was imposed
    • However, there are some exemptions
      • Traffic infractions that are misdemeanors
      • Judgments for minors
      • Crimes that the court has "set aside" or cleared. This does not "just happen" after 5 or 10 years and is not an automatic process. To have convictions "set aside" or "expunged," you must file a court petition
    • You need to provide proof that you completed the court requirements (probation, community service, etc.), as well as proof of the final disposition, if the sentence was withheld or deferred
    • If a conviction is discovered during the background check and you failed to mention it on your application, your license will be denied
  • Felony Conviction
    • Even when having a felony may not be a reason to deny licensure, not reporting it could be. The denial of an application will be reported to the NAIC national database.
    • We strongly recommend that you do NOT apply for licensure in michigan if you have a felony conviction that falls within the following regulations:
      • MCL 500.1239(1)(d): “Having been convicted of a felony within 10 years before the uniform application was filed.”
      • MCL 500.1239(1)(e): “Regardless of the date of conviction, having been convicted of a felony involving any of the following: (i) Violence or threat of violence against an individual, including, but not limited to, domestic violence; (ii) Criminal sexual conduct; (iii) A felony of a fiduciary nature or financial nature such as fraud, embezzlement, bribery, or extortion.”
      • MCL 500.1239(1)(b) provision also allows for the denial of a license: "Having been convicted of a felony other than a felony described in subsection (1)(e)."
    • You can look up your criminal history by visiting the Michigan State Police’s ICHAT (Internet Criminal History Access Tool)
    • You cannot "drop off" a felony from your record
    • You do not need a lawyer to begin the process of having your conviction annulled or expunged
    • If your offense took place in another state, reach out to the court that found you guilty
  • Administrative Action
    • All administrative action must be reported
      • Having a license censure, suspension, cancellation or termination
      • Being assessed a fine
      • Receiving a cease and desist, a compliance or a prohibition order
      • Surrendering a license to resolve an administrative action
      • Being party to an administrative or arbitration hearing
      • Violating any insurance laws or violating any regulation, subpoena, or order of the commissioner or of another state’s insurance commissioner
      • Having an insurance producer license or its equivalent denied or revoked
    • The only exceptions are terminations due solely to noncompliance with continuing education or failure to pay a renewal fee
    • Administrative actions involving unfair trade practices or fraud in the insurance industry, as well as those involving incompetence, unreliability, or financial irresponsibility in the conduct of business, require license denial under MCL 500.1239(1)(f) and (g)
  • Child Support (for Individual Applicants)
    • You must present proof of compliance if you have an obligation that is past due, which may include any of the following:
      • Evidence of recent payments
      • Court's statement of compliance
      • A new repayment arrangement

For additional information you can visit our Michigan Contractor Licenses Webpage.

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