An Oklahoma insurance producer has been fined $12,000 and had her license revoked following an investigation by the Oklahoma Insurance Department’s (OID) Anti-Fraud Unit.
The enforcement action against Cheri Ellis, an insurance producer based in McAlester, followed multiple consumer complaints alleging misconduct involving premium payments and insurance documentation.
According to OID, investigators received five complaints accusing Ellis of misappropriating more than $90,000 in customer premium payments, issuing a fraudulent Certificate of Insurance, and providing misleading information regarding premium amounts owed by policyholders.
A show cause hearing was held on Nov. 13, 2025, at OID headquarters before an independent hearing examiner. Ellis did not appear at the hearing. After reviewing the evidence presented, the hearing officer concluded that Ellis failed to forward premium payments from five insureds to the appropriate insurance carriers, leading to policy cancellations. The investigation also found that she failed to return premium funds to an insured within the required 30-day period.
In addition, Ellis was found to have provided a false or altered Certificate of Insurance and misled several insureds by collecting premium amounts higher than required, changing payment terms on policies, and giving inaccurate information regarding policy cancellations.
As a result of the findings, OID revoked Ellis’ insurance producer license and imposed a $12,000 fine. Ellis was the owner of Independent Insurance Agency (IIA) in McAlester.
Information for this article was provided by Oklahoma Insurance Department. Views and claims expressed in this article are those of the source company and do not necessarily reflect the views of AgencyEquity.com. This article may have been edited with the help of AI.
