Consumer Groups Clash With NAIC President

Washington

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners should ask its current president to resign if he continues to pursue a deregulation agenda that places the viability of state regulation at risk, a coalition of consumer groups contend.

NAIC President Ernst Csiszar, who is South Carolina's commissioner, favors broad deregulation, and his views “are on the extreme end of the spectrum of views of members of the NAIC,” the coalition charged in a letter to all the members of the Kansas City, Mo.-based group.

“Consumers will be hurt and state insurance regulators deprived of authority to help consumers or address market problems under the deregulation agenda,” the coalition added in the letter.

The letter was signed by J. Robert Hunter, director of insurance for the Consumer Federation of America, and Norma P. Garcia, a representative of Consumers Union, both based in Washington, on behalf of a group called Americans for Insurance Reform.

The letter charged that Mr. Csiszar pushes his agenda by ensuring that only his perspective is presented to fellow regulators. At a conference in early February, the letter said, no consumer representative made presentations, in a departure from previous years.

The letter said that the consumer organizations have no objection to a healthy discussion of the issues that includes all perspectives. “But when Director Csiszar uses his position as NAIC president to stifle debate, eliminate opposing views and push his radical deregulation agenda, he is not serving the NAIC as an institution, other state insurance regulators or consumers,” the letter said.

The letter urges NAIC members to “rein in” Mr. Csiszar's activities before irreparable damage is done to state regulation and consumer protection.

In response, Mr.Csiszar criticized the charges as “unwarranted and inaccurate.”

“While we value the input and the views of Mr. Hunter and Ms. Garcia, in this case they have misrepresented the facts, and I think it is important to point that out,” Mr. Csiszar said. “I have absolutely not abandoned state regulation nor any NAIC established policies.”

Mr. Csiszar said that NAIC continues to work with Congress to ensure that ongoing regulatory reforms will preserve state regulatory authority and essential consumer protection initiatives.

“Congress is calling for 'radical' reforms in state regulation,” he added, “and may take certain steps with or without state regulator involvement.”

Reproduced from National Underwriter Property & Casualty/Risk & Benefits Management Edition, March 5, 2004. Copyright 2004 by The National Underwriter Company in the serial publication. All rights reserved. Copyright in this article as an independent work may be held by the author.

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Consumer Groups Clash With NAIC President

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