Michigan insurance regulator briefs committee on consumer help, auto no-fault changes and fraud unit

Joseph Sullivan, legislative liaison manager for the Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services, told the Michigan House Insurance Committee that the department’s work covers licensing, financial oversight, market conduct and consumer assistance for insurance and state‑chartered financial institutions.

Sullivan said DIFS is “fee funded and do not require tax dollars to operate,” and described the agency’s multiple consumer resources, licensing responsibilities and enforcement activities.

The presentation matters because DIFS oversees the products that touch nearly every Michigan resident — from auto and homeowners insurance to life and health coverage — and enforces recent changes to Michigan’s auto no‑fault system that affect policy costs and consumer protections.

Sullivan told the committee the department’s Office of Consumer Services operates a live call center, answered about 50,000 calls in 2024 and opened more than 9,000 formal complaints last year. “As a result of those complaints we received just for last year, we recovered over $22,000,000 for your constituents,” he said. Those recoveries include premium refunds, reversal of denied claims and other payments to consumers.

He describe…