Oregon Lawmakers must help prevent insurance rate increases.
Senate Bill 174 would undermine protections for families and small businesses and risk making insurance harder to find and more expensive at a time we can least afford it.
We can’t afford SB 174.
Oregonians are already finding it harder to get affordable insurance for their homes, vehicles, and businesses. Premiums are up, existing policies are being canceled or not renewed, and in some communities it is hard to get coverage altogether. But instead of protecting Oregon consumers with legislation that promotes a stable insurance market, SB 174 adds the threat of more lawsuits, more fees for lawyers and more costly regulation.
Senate Bill 174 will expand litigation exposure and regulatory overreach. We can’t afford for Oregon to become the next California, where some insurers have stopped selling new policies and are nonrenewing policyholders, and some insurers are exiting the state altogether.
The Facts
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Senate Bill 174 Risks Raising Insurance Premiums
This unnecessary bill opens the door for excessive and frivolous lawsuits, because it allows two lawsuits for a single insurance claim – one seeking damages from an at-fault party, then another against the insurer for how they resolved the claim.
A recent study by Milliman found that this legislation would cost Oregon consumers $0.6-1.4 billion, an estimated 7% to 16% rise in premiums paid by Oregon residents and businesses.
Other states that have adopted these policies have seen rates rise.
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Senate Bill 174 is Unnecessary and Costly for Our State Agency
Insurance companies are already held accountable under rigorous oversight by the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services (DCBS).
This proposal would significantly expand the workload of DCBS.
Rather than regulating the market and protecting consumers, bills like this will transform the agency into an investigatory arm of personal injury lawyers by making them responsible for conducting investigations on their behalf - leading to excessive settlement demands and drawn-out, costly, and contentious lawsuits.
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Oregon Cannot Afford This, Especially Now
Adding new lawsuits, regulations and higher costs won’t help improve the availability or cost of insurance for Oregon families.
People across Oregon are feeling a real pinch from the rising costs of living, and we know that rural Oregonians, retirees, working people and vulnerable families could be the most impacted by this bill.
Our state’s leaders say we need to tackle affordable housing, climate change, and access to childcare. Senate Bill 174 threatens to make insurance less available or affordable for the projects that offer solutions to these pressing issues.
