Georgia repairers asked to voice concerns to state insurance rates committee
The Georgia General Assembly has launched the Blue-Ribbon Study Committee on Insurance Rates, which the Georgia Collision Industry Association (GCIA) says is “a major step toward transparency and accountability within our state’s insurance industry.”
According to the General Assembly, the committee will “conduct a thorough examination of the insurance industry’s rate-setting practices, profit margins, claims processing, and regulatory compliance to ensure that Georgia’s businesses, citizens, and consumers are not being subjected to unjustified rate hikes.”
“For collision repairers, this initiative directly impacts how we serve our customers and sustain our operations,” GCIA wrote in an email to its members. “It’s a crucial opportunity for our industry’s voice to be heard.”
GCIA encourages repairers to attend the committee’s upcoming meetings.
“Your presence helps lawmakers see the real-world effects of insurance rate structures and claims handling on Georgia repair facilities and consumers,” GCIA said. “GCIA will continue tracking the committee’s progress and sharing updates as the discussion unfolds.”
The next meeting will be held Nov. 21 at Georgia Farm Bureau, 1620 Bass Rd. in Macon, at 9:30 a.m.
The Associated Press has noted National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) data that shows in many lines of coverage, insurers were less profitable in Georgia than in several other states in 2022.
“Risk consultant David Stegall said the number of claims is in line with Georgia’s high number of car accidents,” the AP article states. “Both claims and payouts have mostly been stable or falling, especially when adjusted for population growth and inflation, he said.
“He also found that while Georgia residents pay between 11% and 68% more for car insurance than residents of other states, they are more than 200% more likely to be in an accident.”
The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) said in September that the formation of the committee is in direct response to the tort reform measure it backed that passed in the spring.
Ongoing nationwide labor rate suppression was brought up last week during an open mic portion of the Collision Industry Conference (CIC) meeting held during the SEMA Show in Las Vegas.
Aaron Schulenburg, executive director of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS), and Michael Bradshaw, chairman of SCRS, both addressed concerns about a large insurance company lowering reimbursement rates for essential repair operations.
“When the reimbursement levels contract, or when they never kept pace with the investments that we had to make to perform those repairs properly, it threatens the sustainability of our businesses and the availability of the skilled professionals that we need to perform these tasks — the skilled professionals that we need to keep the motoring public safe,” Schulenburg said. “We’re seeing this concern voiced by shops in nearly every region across the country, nearly every state across the United States. It’s not isolated.”
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Featured image: Georgia State Capitol Building in Atlanta. (Credit: f11photo/iStock)