State Revokes Licenses of 2 Insurance Executives

The insurance sales and administration licenses of former Orange County insurance executives Michael A. Rubell and James B. Helm and their company, Rubell Helm Insurance Services, have been revoked by the state Insurance Department.

Rubell and Helm agreed to the revocations under a settlement in which they admitted no wrongdoing but agreed not to apply for new licenses for at least five years, said Dennis Ward, chief investigator for the Insurance Department.

The agreement followed a six-month investigation by the Insurance Department into allegations that the company allowed more than $4 million of clients’ health insurance claims to go unpaid.

A review of the allegations by the Orange County district attorney’s office is still under way.

Ward said that some of the claims still have not been paid but that his deparment has no authority to require restitution. “The maximum penalty is revocation of their licenses,” Ward said.

Rubell and Helm have denied any responsibility for unpaid claims.