Live Insurance News

GEICO suddenly stops selling California auto insurance policies by phone or in-person

August 12, 2022August 11, 2022 Logan B.

The insurer has shut offices, laid of hundreds of people and isn’t selling in any way other than online. GEICO has stopped selling California auto insurance policies by phone or in person, while regulators have said that they are monitoring the situation. All 38 of the insurer’s agent offices in California have now been closed and workers laid off. California drivers with GEICO auto insurance policies are still covered and it is still possible to sign up for new coverage online. That said, the in-person offices are all closed, and…

Auto Club Insurance files for $202 million California car insurance rate increase

August 3, 2022August 2, 2022 G. Turner

Commissioner Ricardo Lara’s office has received the request to let the company hike premiums. Auto Club Insurance has filed for an overall California car insurance rate hike of 6.9 percent. This will impact 1.44 million policyholders and the total of 2.68 million vehicles they have insured through that provider. The rate increase will mean an average annual hike in premiums of $75 per vehicle ($140 per policy). There have already been several insurers that have filed in California to be able to increase their car insurance rates for new and…

Consumer Watchdog says California Commissioner should stop Mercury’s insurance rate discrimination

July 22, 2022July 21, 2022 Logan B.

The group sent a signature-filled petition to Commissioner Lara regarding job-related premiums calculations. Consumer Watchdog has issued a letter containing a petition to California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara, calling for him to reject insurer Mercury’s insurance rate discrimination practices. The group wants the commissioner to stop the proposed rate hike based on job- and education-related calculations. Mercury has proposed a $131 million hike to its total auto premiums, and Consumer Watchdog has called for Commissioner Lara to reject it as well as the insurance rate discrimination it says the insurer…

California Commissioner Lara places green investment onus on insurance companies

April 20, 2022April 19, 2022 G. Turner

A new report detailed how insurers have funded fossil fuel companies and the impact it has had. California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara recently released a report and webpage in which he detailed the investments insurance companies have made into fossil fuel. The report and webpage are components of the commissioner’s broader efforts by the Commissioner. Commissioner Lara has used this report on investments into fossil fuels by insurance companies as a part of his broader strategy to protect Californian consumers from the impact of climate change. The state is making…

New California homeowners’ insurance and home hardening bill introduced

February 28, 2022February 24, 2022 Marc

California homeowners insurance - person signing paper

The legislation would require mandatory policy issuance and create a residential grant program. A new California homeowners insurance bill was introduced by Assemblymember Marc Levine (D-Marin County) to require mandatory issuance of policies. It would also form a new grant program for residential home hardening for properties in areas with a sizeable wildfire risk. Assembly Bill 1755 would require insurers to provide coverage to customers that have hardened their property. Assembly Bill 1755 would require that California homeowners’ insurance companies must issue a policy to property owners in the state…