State Seizes Unlicensed Santa Ana Insurance Firm : Crackdown: The small company allegedly wrote up to 15,000 policies in less than a year before destroying its files.

The state Department of Insurance has seized a small insurance firm operating in Santa Ana and Norco as part of the state’s crackdown on unlicensed operators.

Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi on Tuesday identified the firm as Continental Insurance, which operated primarily as Continental Savers Insurance and Continental Indemnity Group. The firm is not related to the large, New York-based Continental Insurance Co.

Garamendi’s office said Continental Savers wrote up to 15,000 policies in less than a year of operation before destroying most of its files and closing shop as regulators moved to shut down its operations on Friday. The agency acted under a Riverside County Superior Court order issued late Thursday that named it conservator of Continental Savers.

“Essentially, they were hanging out a shingle and collecting premiums with no intention of writing real policies before closing up shop,” said Elena Stern, a spokeswoman for the commissioner. “So far, we only got $9,000 out of one bank account but we’re looking for more. Any obligations to policyholders will be paid from what we seize.”

Continental had been issuing its own automobile insurance policies under Continental Indemnity Group, a company not licensed to sell insurance in California and not currently recognized by the department as a legitimate company.

The company has also been issuing apparently worthless temporary insurance binders for up to 90 days, the department said. The company assured policyholders that policies would be issued after the 90-day day period, the agency said.

Stern said the company typically told customers that it was selling insurance for specific legitimate companies, such as Mercury Insurance, when it had no approval or authority for doing such work.

Garamendi expressed outrage at the operation.

“My action today should drive home the point that I will not tolerate further abuses of California consumers by unlicensed insurers,” he said. “My message to the rest of the disreputable characters out there today is this:

“You can change the name of your business, you can change the name on your bank account, you can even move your operation to another city, you can run but you can’t hide from the Department of Insurance. We will find you and put you out of business.”

The state agency sought the court order to seize Continental Savers after the company refused to give the agency access to its business records, property and offices.

Garamendi has seized 73 insurers, many of them unlicensed operators, since he came into office this year. Earlier this month, he put two unlicensed Orange County companies--Exodus Insurance Cos. and APEX Insurance--under conservatorship. He also issued cease-and-desist orders to stop 19 agents and brokers from selling policies under Exodus and APEX.

In addition, Garamendi has issued four enforcement actions against another Orange County insurer, FGS Insurance.