Frustrated by rising home insurance rates, some North Carolina residents want a greater role in the rate approval process and state lawmakers are looking to give it to them.
The North Carolina Insurance Committee is considering a bill that would create the Citizens’ Property Advisory Board, which would review homeowners and fire and dwelling insurance rate filings and make recommendations to the state’s Department of Insurance on behalf of the public.
Currently, the North Carolina Rating Bureau negotiates rates on behalf of the industry with the state insurance department, which then are signed-off on by the insurance commissioner. But after three homeowners’ rate increases in five years, lawmakers think it is time to balance the scales.
Senator Thom Goolsby (R-New Hanover) is sponsoring a bill (SB 395) that would create an 11-member advisory board that would be authorized to review rate filings, make recommendations and investigate policyholder complaints. The board would consist of six at-large members, two each appointed by the governor, the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House. One of the at-large members must be an expert in insurance and another member, an elected city or county official. The board would also include a real estate broker, a licensed general contractor, an actuary, and a licensed attorney certified as a specialist in real property. One member must be an expert in climatology with hurricane modeling expertise.
Goolsby has lined-up 11 co-sponsors, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Brown (R-Jones/Onslow). But perhaps his greatest asset this year comes in the form of Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin. Last year, lawmakers tried to advance a bill that would have abolished the authority of the insurance commissioner and the North Carolina Rating Bureau to set rates, handing that responsibility over to a seven-member board. At that time, Goodwin came out strongly against the bill, arguing that it would remove his power to protect consumers. The current bill, however, would preserve Goodwin’s role as the final voice on insurance rates.
Topics Legislation North Carolina Homeowners
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