COMMISSIONERS FAIL TO COMMIT TO HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE DATA TRANSPARENCY

The following information was released by Public Citizen:

Despite skyrocketing insurance costs for consumers triggered by extreme weather, a survey of state insurance commissioners found that regulators have mixed feelings about disclosing data on homeowners insurance

WASHINGTON Most state insurance commissioners refuse to take a stand on disclosing data on homeowners insurance as the crisis in that market worsens and disasters triggered by El Nio and climate change loom larger, according to a new report released today by Public Citizen.

In a survey sent to all 56 state or territorial insurance commissioners, only 28% of responding offices said they support publication of homeowners insurance data at the ZIP-code level. Among other responding offices, 56% did not commit to publication of this data, and 17% gave conditional answers tied to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners' (NAIC) forthcoming recommendations.

"Whether you can see what's happening in your home insurance market shouldn't depend on the whims of your state insurance commissioner," said Rick Morris, senior insurance campaigner with Public Citizen's Climate Program. "And most insurance commissioners have remained silent or are even antagonistic to efforts to reveal basic information about homeowners insurance markets."

In March, NAIC announced it would begin to collect homeowners insurance market data from across the country, potentially culminating in the publication of some of the most granular data on how climate change is impacting insurance markets across the country.

Of the 18 insurance commissioners' offices that responded to the survey, an overwhelming majority (78%) affirmed that they are participating in the homeowners market data call.

Because insurance is regulated at the state level, the availability of information depends on which state a consumer lives in. For example, if a consumer in Texas wanted to move to where the insurance market was safest, they could easily refer to the state's insurance map to find the area of the state with the lowest average premiums and fewest nonrenewals. But Texas is one of the few states that make that data accessible.

Property and casualty insurance companies blame climate-driven extreme weather for rising prices and falling quality. And while climate change has driven up prices, the massive hikes experienced by consumers across the country have also been driven by historic profits, excessive executive compensation packages, billion-dollar advertising wars, and regulatory capture.

"As climate change and insurance industry profiteering push premiums higher and reduce coverage, the American public deserves more than industry talking points and anecdotes," said Morris. "Insurance commissioners face a choice: either they publish nationwide zip-code level results of this data call and regularly update it, or they betray the fundamental principles of insurance regulation."