Criticism came fast and furious from a consumer advocate, insurance regulator and title insurance company executive, among others, all complaining about anti-competitive practices at a recent congressional hearing.

Congress “must act to remove or sharply reduce” the financial incentives for title insurance companies, title agents and other intermediaries to inflate the cost of title insurance, said Robert Hunter, director of insurance for the Washington-based Consumer Federation of America.

Colorado Deputy Insurance Commissioner Erin Toll and Douglas R. Miller, president and chief executive officer of Title One Inc., a Minneapolis, Minn.-based title insurer, gave similar testimony before the Housing Subcommittee of the House Financial Services Committee on April 27. The hearing came just days after the Government Accountability Office issued a scathing report on the title insurance industry, detailing a lack of competitiveness, regulation and questionable costs. (See related story on this page.)

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