Auto Insurance Leads States' Legislative Concerns

Auto Insurance Leads States' Legislative Concerns

By Mark E. Ruquet

NU Online News Service, Aug. 2, 12:25 p.m. EDT?One-fifth of the 251 property-casualty bills enacted by states so far this year relate to the regulation of automobile insurance, most of which have industry support, according to an insurers trade group.[@@]

The analysis was provided by the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies.

Ken Marshall, state affairs information manager for the Indianapolis-based association, said that the report, which is updated quarterly, indicates that automobile and workers' compensation are the leading concern among legislators throughout the country, as they have been in the past.

"The reason we have been doing these analyses for several years now is to identify the numbers and types of laws that have been approved in every state and alert our members to new and modified requirements that could somehow impact their operation," said Mr. Marshall.

A total of 23 states approved 50 new motor vehicle-related laws, the majority of which pertain directly to driving under the influence, seatbelt or child safety standards, and proof of insurance requirements to improve traffic safety.

"Anything that would have the potential to improve motor safety, improve life safety, and reduce the possibility of collisions, damage and claims is going to receive industry support," he noted.

Thirty-six new laws pertain to workers' comp. The majority of these address specific benefit or claims eligibility, or the role and authority of the state workers' comp regulator. They also provide comprehensive technical and substantive revisions to a state's workers' comp statutes.

Not all the changes would necessarily be welcomed by insurers, he noted, but overall he could not identify any individual trend.

Other notable laws enacted include reform of the civil litigation process (15 new laws in 12 states), financial regulations (14 new laws in 10 states), licensure requirements (nine in eight states), and the authority of the state regulator (nine in seven states).

Other measures include regulation related to the Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange claims data bank, premium tax, state building codes, rate regulation and telephone sales.

The analysis covered 37 state legislatures that had adjourned as of July 15.

Not included were eight states not in session at the time of the report and six that did not meet this year.

The report is available to the public and will be updated in November after all legislatures complete their terms.

Individual state summaries (including bill summaries, categorical reference, effective dates, chapter references and full text links) can be found on the State Legislation pages at www.namic.org/scorecard/default.asp.