RALEIGH -- Two insurance companies that were fined more than $2 million in 2004 after being accused of violating North Carolina law have agreed to pay the state nearly $800,000.
The state Department of Insurance said Thursday that United Healthcare Insurance Co. and UnitedHealthcare of North Carolina Inc. will pay the fine to resolve allegations that they violated state law in how they were settling insurance claims.
The settlement comes about five years after the Department of Insurance discovered numerous problems with the companies' claims handling process. The department originally fined the companies $2.2 million in 2004, the highest fine ever levied by the agency.
The department said the settlement money will be used for the state's public schools.
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