Maryland insurance regulator: homeowners market tightening, data call to probe ZIP-code trends

Acting Maryland Insurance Commissioner Marie Grant told the House Environment and Transportation Committee on Friday that homeowners insurance underwriting in Maryland is tightening and the agency is preparing a ZIP-code level data analysis to inform next steps.

Grant, who identified herself as "acting insurance commissioner subject to a Senate confirmation," said the Maryland Insurance Administration (MIA) regulates more than $46,000,000,000 in insurance business and reviews homeowners filings to ensure rates are not inadequate, excessive or unfairly discriminatory. "Insurance is a promise. It's a contract of a risk," she said, adding that solvency monitoring is central to the agency’s work.

The MIA’s filings and market-conduct work show several trends the agency described as early indicators of market strain. The regulator reported 116 homeowners insurers provided annual statement data for 2023 and said underwriters are writing fewer new homeowners policies while company-initiated nonrenewals increased by more than 60 percent. Grant cautioned that the absolute…