North Carolina is currently considering multiple changes to both its auto insurance regulatory system and how auto insurance rates are changed. The new proposals would limit the state’s ability to regulate auto insurance premiums, which are currently controlled by the insurance commissioner, while phasing out a surcharge that insurance policyholders in North Carolina pay to subsidize liability coverage for other drivers. There has been push-back on the proposals from both the insurance commissioner and some democrats in the state legislature.
Several pieces on this issue, that either quoted or were written by Eli Lehrer, Vice President for DC Operations at the Heartland Institute, were published in North Carolina media outlets over the last week. The first article was written by Lehrer and appeared in the Star News and Carolina Journal along with several online publications. The article comments on the many inefficiencies in the North Carolina insurance regulatory system and recommends several steps the legislature can take to make the insurance market more competitive and fairer to safe drivers.
Eli was also quoted in several stories discussing the proposed changes. This included a piece in the Charlotte Observer where Lehrer argued that under the new proposals would insurance rates “would be fairer – and should decline for many drivers.” This article, “Insurance Chief Fights Bill to Curb His Role” can be found online at: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/04/12/2216949/insurance-chief-fights-bill-to.html#ixzz1JclHTxXh
