Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Bill would bar insurers from raising premiums after not-at-fault crashes; insurers warn of higher costs spread across customers
Summary
House Bill 148, introduced by Delegate Natalie Ziegler, would bar automobile insurers from raising an insured's premium based on a not-at-fault crash; supporters called it a fairness measure after testimony from a constituent whose premium more than doubled following a rear-end collision, while insurers warned the change could shift costs to other policyholders and complicate rate-setting.
House Bill 148, introduced by Delegate Natalie Ziegler, would add a prohibition on increasing an insured’s premium after a not-at-fault accident to Maryland’s current statute that already limits cancellation or nonrenewal for two or fewer not-at-fault accidents in three years.
The bill’s sponsor, Delegate Natalie Ziegler, said the measure is “a very simple consumer protection bill” prompted by a constituent who was rear-ended by a tractor-trailer. Ziegler told the Economic Matters Committee the bill inserts “or also you can't increase the premium” into existing law to prevent what she described as the practical equivalent of cancellation when an insurer sharply raises a rate after a not-at-fault crash.
The bill’s purpose, supporters said, is to protect drivers who are not responsible for crashes from steep premium spikes that they cannot control. Colt Romberger, the constituent who testified about a March 2023 rear-end crash in Illinois, told committee members his family’s six-month premium rose from $643.59 to $1,337.12 — “If you do the math, that's a 107.76% increase.”…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
