I’ll save you the trouble of reading 4 pages.

The Texas House State Affairs Committee was charged to “Examine the impact of current economic challenges on the escalating costs of insurance premiums“. They held a hearing with invited testimony only. Many consumers, especially in this area, contacted the committee. I don’t think it helped. Here is a summary. The full report can be read here starting on page 70.

• Only invited testimony was allowed including a lobbyist from the Texas Coalition for Affordable Insurance Solutions representing the top 6 insurers in the state.
• In 2003 Texas adopted a “file and use” system allowing insurance companies to raise rates without prior approval from the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI)
• TDI has the rights to disapprove the rate increases but has rarely used this right
• Climate change is being blamed for high insurance rates disguise as “Frequency of storms” and “Intensity of storms”
• 60-70% of all premiums are used to pay out claims.
• AARP testified concerning the hardship being placed on the elderly on fixed incomes
• Oncor stated their insurance went from $10 Million to $60 Million in just a few years. This is passed on to consumers
• Insurance companies are complaining about “reinsurance” which I believe is insurance for insurance companies.
• Texas is NOT addressing non-renewals. They are not collecting this data. 5 of the 6 companies in the TCAIS will not cover the Bay Area
• 4 Companies, including Progressive, have left the state
• Legislators are concerned about the lack of transparency in rate increases

Recommendations:
This is disturbing. The outrageous cost of roofing after an event such as hail or a storm was not mentioned. There is evidence of price gouging concerning construction cost. They need to address it.

The recommendations included “Promote Risk Mitigation Programs:” such as the Fortify program Alabama adopted 15 years ago. A water downed bill has been filed on this issue.

They recommend providing tax funded backup to insurance companies to keep them in Texas. That doesnt make sense especially when they also recommend phasing out the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) and the Texas Fair Plan to allow the industry to provide these services. (They do NOT want to provide these services)

They also recommend educating homeowners and placing a surcharge on all insurance companies to pay out disaster claims.

As I said about the Senate report. This was underwhelming.

Underwhelming to say the least.

If you would like to read the report on the interim charges to the Texas Senate Business and Commerce Committee it is available online here starting on page 19. It is interim charge 7 titled “Addressing the Rising Cost of Insurance. It is only 2 pages. Here are my notes/thoughts.

• The Committee held a hearing on Oct 1. The testimony was dominated by the industry.
• Texas has the 2nd largest market in the nation bringing in $290 Billion in premiums.
• The increase in premiums are due to climate change, inflation, labor expenses, supply chain disruptions and reinsurance (LOL. They are using climate change against us to increase our premiums. Inflation is well under control and has been for a while but it did NOT account for a doubling of premiums. Supply chain disruptions were corrected years ago.)
• They ignored the inflated cost of roofing after an event such as hail or extreme weather. Why does a roof cost $24,000 to replace after an event, but only $6000 at other times?
• They blame us for not “shopping around”.
• TDI stated only 4 companies left Texas in 2024 but ignored comments from area such as the Bay Area where 5 of 6 members of the Texas Coalition for Affordable Insurance Solutions (TCAIS) will not longer write policies.
• There was a significant uptick in the Texas Fair Access to Insurance Requirements (FAIR) Plan from 72,626 to 91,841 from 2003 to 2024.
• TDI claims homeowners in Texas saw an average rate increase of 21% in 2023. I’m not sure if that is a rise in rates or premiums which are two different things.
• TDI reviewed 1313 rate filings with 107 filings withdrawn, 78 rejected for administrative discrepancies. They did not disclose how many rate increases were rejected by TDI.
• The recommendations are basic if not ridiculous.
  • Implement guardrails to protect against unfair pricing practices, which could include, but is not limited to, rate filings and premiums assessed to policyholders.
  • Support the efforts of both TDI and OPIC to improve notice to policyholders about rate changes, coverage reductions, and comparison-shopping tools.

I have secured the Webster Activity Center on Jan 7, 2025 for another community meeting to discuss and take action concerning the rising cost of home insurance in our area. We will focus on the upcoming legislative session and how we can take the opportunity to influence our elected officials. For those who are not aware this session begins Jan 14 and will continue till June 2. 

Our elected officials have been invited to attend and discuss what we can do. Please save the date, invite your neighbors, and I will see you Tuesday. Preliminary agenda:

• Short recap of the last meeting
• Update on upcoming legislation
• How can we participate in the process
• Open forum, Q&A

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Tuesday Jan 7, 2005 6:00PM-8:00PM
Webster Activity Center
311 Pennsylvania Ave
Webster Texas 77598