Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Insurance Regulation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Insurance industry, consumer groups and repair shops spar over appraisal thresholds, valuation tools and rental coverage
Summary
The House Corporations Committee heard multiple insurance‑related bills on March 25, including proposals to raise appraisal thresholds, change allowable valuation tools for totaled vehicles, require comparable rental vehicles for claimants, change total‑loss thresholds, and restrict defense‑within‑limits policies.
Committee members heard a cluster of insurance‑related proposals on March 25 and received competing testimony from insurance trade groups, repair shops, rental companies and consumer advocates.
Key items discussed: • Appraisal threshold and use of photos (House Bill 5571): Insurers and trade associations supported raising the threshold for a licensed, on‑site appraiser from $2,500 to $5,000 and allowing modern photo/video and validated online tools to resolve smaller claims more efficiently. Jonathan Treiber of the American Property Casualty Insurance Association said $5,000 is below the state’s average auto claim and would focus in‑person appraisers on larger losses.
• Consumer‑accessible fair‑market valuation (House Bill 5572 / Carfax): Carfax testified for a limited measure to allow consumer‑accessible fair‑market values derived from live comparable listings and historic records; auto‑body groups opposed measures they said would let some valuation providers that ‘‘diminish value’’ based on prior damage override repair estimates.
• Appraisal/umpire selection procedure (House Bill 6054): Insurers urged caution about proposed changes that could require a party who first lists umpire candidates to be disadvantaged; the insurance federation warned the draft could incentivize gamesmanship and recommended clarifying language and safeguards so neither side can “lock” the umpire list unfairly.
• Total‑loss threshold increase (House Bill 6053): Proposals to raise the threshold for deeming a vehicle a total loss from 75% to 85% were opposed by insurance representatives because they estimated the change could push thousands of additional vehicles into complex repairs and add millions annually to insured losses. Trade witnesses said an 85% threshold could make it harder to total vehicles after flood or water damage.
• Rental‑vehicle comparability (House Bills 6032 and 6079): Repair shops and rental‑car advocates asked insurers to provide like‑for‑like replacement rentals for third‑party claimants; insurers warned that mandating comparable luxury or trim‑level replacements would substantially increase claim costs and premiums.
• Defense‑within‑limits (House Bill 5812): Trade groups urged the committee not to ban defense‑within‑limits (DWL) policies, widely used in commercial lines, saying DWL helps control pricing and is important for smaller markets such as Rhode Island.
Committee members asked for drafting fixes in several bills and noted some technical clarifications — for example, whether a rental‑vehicle comparability requirement was intended for third‑party claimants only. No final votes were taken; committee staff will circulate written testimony and follow up with sponsors about redrafting.
