WA Insurance Official Seeks Re-examination of Rate Criteria

The bill, proposed by the WA State Insurance Commissioner, cleared its Senate Committee on Friday (February 21st). The deadline for bills to remain alive in the legislature was that day.

   The bill would re-examine criteria used to determine rates

Insurance rates have been climbing in many states across the US and in WA, but largely due to the vast number of natural disasters, and some policy revisions and laws aimed at insurance companies in different states, including WA that went into effect in 2024 and 2025.

Now, WA State Insurance Commissioner Patty Kuderer's proposed bill to re-evaluate rates has passed a Senate Committee.

SB (Senate Bill) 5589, sponsored by Dem Senator Bob Hawsegawa of Seattle, would mandate a study of how certain criteria used to determine insurance rates (especially for drivers) would impact 'disadvantaged' persons in WA.

Kuderer's office says the use of credit ratings, credit history and other factors to determine rates needs to be assessed. She says insurance companies also utilize algorithms to 'predict' the likelihood of a consumer filing claims.

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Kuderer's bill would examine these factors, and also look at alternative methods of determining rates without the credit information. Kurderer says it's her job to make sure these practices are not discriminatory, and she wants data from WA to be examined.

A few years ago, her predecessor, Mike Kreidler, unsuccessfully pushed a similar bill to eliminate credit-based insurance scoring altogether in WA.

Opponents of credit and other data-based scoring say it's discriminatory toward lower-income or disadvantaged society groups. Supporters say getting rid of these practices will remove the 'reward' of possibly lower rates for financially responsible persons.