In a letter to the Massachusetts Joint Committee on Financial Services, consumer advocates urged the Committee to support S.790, a bill that would reduce auto insurance costs. The letter was signed by the Consumer Federation of America, Consumer Action, Consumer Reports, and Public Citizen.
S.790 seeks to create an equitable auto insurance market that more heavily weighs driving-related factors like driving record and annual mileage rather than demographic factors that correlate highly with income like zip code or homeowners insurance.
Importantly, the amendments to this bill maintain existing consumer protections in Massachusetts law in order to ensure that insurance companies do not have access to loopholes by which they would replace one form of socioeconomic discrimination with another.