657.
(a) Where any If an admitted insurer, licensed to issue motor vehicle liability policies as defined in Section 16450 of the Vehicle Code, or any a licensed insurance agent refuses to accept an application for such a a motor vehicle liability policy or refuses to issue such a policy when a written application has been made, the refusing agent or refusing insurer shall furnish to the applicant for insurance a written statement explaining the reason or reasons relied upon for such action the refusal if within 30 days of such the refusal the applicant requests in writing, from the agent or insurer who has refused to accept the application or to issue the policy, such a written explanation. Such The statement shall be furnished within 30 days of receipt of such the request.(b) Any An insurer or agent willfully violating any provisions of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and is punishable by a fine not exceeding one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,000) ($1,500) for each violation thereof.
(c) There shall be no liability on the part of, and no cause of action of any nature shall arise against, the Insurance Commissioner or against any an insurer, its authorized representative, its agents, its employees, or any a firm, person person, or corporation furnishing to the insurer information as to the reasons for such a refusal, for any a statement made by any of them in any a written notice of reasons for refusing to accept the application or issue the policy or in any other communication, oral or written, specifying the reasons for such action the refusal or the providing of the information pertaining thereto, to the refusal, or for statements made or evidence submitted in any hearings conducted in connection therewith. with the refusal.