Chap. 155.—An ACT to amend and re-enact Section 4235 of the Code of Virginia,
as heretofore amended, as to filing list of agents of insurance companies.
[S B 154]
Approved March 12, 1936

1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia, That section
forty-two hundred and thirty-five of the Code of Virginia, as hereto-
fore amended, be amended and re-enacted so as to read as follows:

Section 4235. Insurance Companies to File List of Agents; Regis-
tration of Agents ; Hearings and Appeals; Fine for Soliciting Insurance
Without Registration—Every insurance company, except fraternal
beneficiary associations, orders or societies, doing business in this
State shall file annually with the State Corporation Commission, on
or before the first day of July, and at such other times as they may be
appointed, a list of the agents of said company, authorized to solicit
insurance for it in the State of Virginia, and each such agent shall be
required to secure a certificate of registration from said commission,
for each company proposed to be represented by him, authorizing him
to represent said company for a period ending on the fifteenth day
of July of each year. The fee for said registration shall be one dollar
per annum. The commission may, for good cause, refuse to register
any such agent, or may, at any time that it may come to its knowledge
that any agent has misappropriated any premium entrusted to him, or
has failed to apply said premium as directed by the policyholder or
prospective policyholder, or has been guilty of rebating, twisting the
policies of other companies, or misrepresenting the provisions of the
policy he is selling, or of the policies of other companies, or has
violated any of the provisions of section forty-two hundred and twenty-
two of the Code of Virginia, revoke or suspend the certificate of
registration of said agent. The commission may summon witnesses
against any agent accused of wrong-doing and any registered agent or
agent whose registration is refused may have a hearing before the
commission on any charge brought against him and may introduce
evidence in his behalf. If the commission revokes or suspends the cer-
tificate of registration of any agent, or refuses to register any agent,
such agent may, as a matter of right, appeal to the Supreme Court
of Appeals from such final order as the commission may make, with
reference thereto.

The certificate of registration shall state the date on which it was
issued, the name of the agent, and his address, and the name of the
company represented by him, and shall extend only to the individual
mentioned in it, and not to any clerk or employee of said agent.

Before the commission shall issue a certificate of registration to any
person who has not heretofore received such a certificate, it shall re-
quire the company desiring to appoint such person as its agent to
solicit insurance for it in this State, to certify by an executive officer
or managing agent thereof, that such company has duly investigated
the character and record of such person, and satisfied itself that he is
trustworthy to act as its agent and intends to act in good faith as an
insurance agent; and the commission may, by such independent investi-
gation as it may deem proper or necessary, satisfy itself that an
applicant for registration is trustworthy and has sufficient knowl-
ledge of the business of insurance to conduct the same intelligently.

Any person soliciting for, or procuring applications for, any insur-
ance company authorized to do business in this State without having
first procured a certificate of registration as hereinbefore prescribed
shall be subject to a fine of not less than ten dollars nor more than
one hundred dollars.

This section shall not apply to any mutual fire insurance company
conducting business exclusively in this State and on a strictly mutual
plan which pays its losses wholly from assessments upon its members
and makes no division or distribution of its earnings or profits among
its members.

The fees provided for in this section shall be collected by the com-
mission and shall be paid directly into the general funds of the treasury
of the Commonwealth.