Texas Administrative Code › Title 1 - ADMINISTRATION › Part 3 - OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL › Chapter 55 - CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT › Subchapter M - INTERCEPT OF INSURANCE CLAIMS › Section 55.605 - Protection from Liability; Remittance of Funds

Current through Reg. 49, No. 28; July 12, 2024
(a) An insurer that provides information
				  required by this subchapter or acts in good faith to comply with procedures
				  established by the Child Support Division (CSD) for the operation of the
				  insurance intercept program under this subchapter, including the remittance of
				  funds as specified under this rule, or responds to a notice of child support
				  lien or levy under Texas Family Code Chapter 157, Subchapter G, is not liable
				  for those acts under any law to any person. This includes but is not limited to
				  any claims asserted under Chapter 541, Chapter 542, Chapter 601, or Chapter 602
				  of the Insurance Code; Chapter 17 of the Business and Commerce Code; Chapter
				  181 of the Health and Safety Code; or an action for common law bad faith.
				  However, an insurer who fails to comply with a child support lien, including
				  the remittance of funds as specified under this rule, may be liable to the CSD
				  as the child support lien claimant in an amount equal to the amount of funds
				  payable under an insurance claim, not to exceed the amount of the child support
				  arrearages for which the lien was issued.
See
Texas Family
				  Code §
										RSA
				  157.324. An insurer who has questions or
				  concerns about a child support lien, including the appropriate remittance of
				  funds under a policy to which the lien attaches, must contact the Texas Special
				  Collections Unit, P.O. Box 12027, Austin, Texas 78711-2027, before paying out
				  any funds under the policy.
(b) An
				  insurer should remit funds in satisfaction of a child support lien in one of
				  the following ways:
(1) On receipt of a
				  signed agreement between the CSD and a claimant and/or claimant's attorney, the
				  insurer should remit the funds agreed to be paid to satisfy the child support
				  lien to: Texas State Disbursement Unit, Insurance Intercept, P.O. Box 245996,
				  San Antonio, Texas 78224-5996. The funds should be made payable to the Office
				  of the Attorney General, and the remittance should identify the name of the
				  claimant/obligor and the CSD's case number(s) as shown on the Notice of
				  Lien.
(2) If the claimant is
				  represented by an attorney but the insurer has not received a copy of any
				  signed agreement between the attorney and the CSD, the insurer should remit all
				  the funds directly to the claimant's attorney and must include the Office of
				  the Attorney General as a co-payee and provide the Office of the Attorney
				  General with written notice of the data and amount of the payment sent to the
				  attorney.
(3) If the claimant has
				  no attorney, and the insurer has not received a copy of any signed agreement
				  between the claimant and the CSD, the insurer must remit all the funds to the
				  Texas State Disbursement Unit, Insurance Intercept, P.O. Box 245996, San
				  Antonio, Texas 78224-5996 with the funds being made payable to the Office of
				  the Attorney General and the remittance should identify the name of the
				  claimant/obligor and the CSD's case number(s) as shown on the Notice of
				  Lien.