Texas Business and Policy Leaders Urge Legislators
to Let the Home and Auto Insurance Marketplace Work For Texas Consumers

An Open Letter to the Texas Legislature:

March 14, 2007

The Texas homeowners and auto insurance marketplace is showing signs of real competition and now offers more choices than ever for consumers, thanks in large part to reforms passed in Senate Bill 14 during the 78th Legislature in 2003.

Expanding choices, growing  competition and healthy insurance companies are all indicators that the insurance marketplace in Texas is on the mend.  As recently as 2002, Texas faced an insurance crisis due in part to a regulatory structure that drove insurers from the state and left some consumers with nowhere to go for coverage.

Today, like the auto insurance market, homeowners insurance customers have more choices than ever in the number of companies offering homeowners insurance and the types and amounts of coverage, rates, products, and services available -- indicators that the marketplace has a chance to expand. 

Texas home and auto insurers have recently showed a profit after many years of losses --  a sign of a healthy market on the rebound. 

Texans benefit from a healthy insurance marketplace where insurers can maintain financial strength.  In a healthy marketplace, Texas becomes attractive to insurers looking to do business here and Texans benefit further from insurance choices, an infusion of capital into the economy and the jobs new insurers bring with them.   

With more companies, comes more insurance availability for Texans, which in turn leads to a well-balanced, stable, responsive market environment. 

As part of the 2003 reforms, Texans are well-served by the some of the nation’s most stringent consumer protections and safeguards to guard against unfair and unwarranted profits, fraud and other abuses.  Texas has created a balanced system that can benefit both buyers and sellers of insurance if the marketplace is allowed to work as it does so successfully for other consumer products.  

Lawmakers should be applauded for creating an environment where insurance competition can thrive.   And Texas consumers, empowered with more choices than ever, can do their part by being educated and aggressive shoppers for the best insurance rates, products, and services for their families. 

Keep the positive momentum going.  Let’s encourage progress by embracing policies for Texas homeowner and auto insurance that foster competition, provide choices for consumers, and keep our economy churning with new investment.

Sincerely,