The Oklahoma Insurance Department announced a package of preliminary legislative proposals that fail to directly address skyrocketing premiums and suggest measures that would make it more difficult for policyholders to fight back, critics say.

Instead, the proposals announced Dec. 10 seek to expand Oklahoma’s fortified roof program and require insurance companies to cover roofs that are not too old or worn out, presumably to address the types of wind and hail damage that have become a flashpoint in Oklahoma. In addition, the proposals call for shorter response times from companies on claim acknowledgement and decisions and propose a not yet detailed homeowners bill of rights.

Most troubling to critics, the proposals seek to impose new obstacles to policyholders suing insurance companies, on the claim that litigation costs translate to rate increases. Rep. Mark Tedford, R-Jenks, and Sen. Aaron Reinhardt, R-Jenks, in a press release, laid blame for rate hikes on attorneys’ fees in lawsuits rather than the peculiarities of Oklahoma law that permit insurers to raise rates without scrutiny.

Tedford, who in November acknowledged that there had been discussions among politicians about modifying the problematic Property and Casualty Loss Cost Rating Act that governs homeowners in-

SEE INSURANCE LEGISLATION, PAGE A4 surance, confirmed that the Insurance Department had specifically request‑ed that the law not be altered.

Now writing bills for the upcom‑ing legislative session based on the department’s requests, Tedford ex‑pressed preference for third-party ad‑justers to settle claim disputes.

“I really don’t like litigation in a property claim,” Tedford said. “In my opinion, when there’s litigation it drags the claim out, adding costs to both sides.”

Oklahoma Insurance Department Commissioner Glen Mulready did not respond to an interview request.

— S kepticism Over Legal Reforms Last month, Tulsa Police Lt. Bil‑ly Hursh, one of hundreds of State Farm policyholders who have tak‑en legal action after being denied a claim on roof damage, became the public face of the effort to fight back against against what Attorney General Gentner Drummond described, in a Dec. 4 petition to intervene in Hursh’s case, as racketeering in the insurance industry.

Hursh was nonplussed at the pro‑posed new laws. “Some of it seems encouraging, but the parts about tort reform are con‑cerning,” Hursh said. “Preventing attorney’s fees from being awarded seems like it would make it harder for regular people to bring litigation against insurance companies. Most people don’t have room in their bud‑gets to pay for attorney fees. Insurance companies definitely do.”

The amount of money insurance companies spend on litigation is not publicly available, but spending on lobbying is: from 2014-2023, U.S. in‑surance companies spent an average $130 million annually.

Hursh had doubts about whether the proposed changes would address the challenges Oklahomans are now facing.

“I’m also really skeptical that what they’re calling frivolous lawsuits have anything to do with insurance compa‑nies charging us more and cheating us on our policies,” Hursh said.

The proposals are too little, too late and too weak, said Robert Hunter, former commissioner of the Texas Department of Insurance and for de‑cades a leading expert on policyhold‑er protections with the Consumer Federation of America.

“Let’s reduce the consumer’s ability to get an attorney and fight abusive claim practices,” Hunter said, making no effort to mask sarcasm in charac‑terizing the proposed changes. “Also, let’s speed up the denials. And thank you so much for letting me get my own inspection at my own cost.”

For Hunter, the department’s pro‑posal signals anxiety at the enthusi‑asm for substantive change that has been growing across Oklahoma for months.

“You can smell the fear that generat‑ed these weak proposals,” Hunter said. “‘Oh, my gosh, they’re on to us. What can we offer to stop the real reform that is coming?’” Hunter called for remedies to what he characterized as long-standing in‑dustry wrongdoing. “Where are the significant penal‑ties for these abuses?” Hunter said. “Where are the fines? Where are the criminal charges?”

Drummond’s press secretary, Les‑lie Berger, said in a written statement that the office of the attorney general would continue to hold accountable insurance companies that break the law. Berger addressed the proposed laws only obliquely.

“We welcome efforts to address ris‑ing homeowners insurance costs and consumer protection through legisla‑tion,” Berger said. “We look forward to seeing the legislation and how it can help consumers in the future.”

— A Definition of Competition Senate Minority Leader Julia Kirt, D-Oklahoma City, who mounted an interim study on homeowners insur‑ance in October, joined the chorus of voices lamenting the proposed laws’ focus on constricting the rights of policyholders seeking justice.

“I’m concerned about these bills limiting Oklahomans’ right to get justice through lawsuits,” Kirt said. “I’ve talked to many people who have had to turn to the courts because in‑surance companies would not honor their contracts.”

Kirt has previously called for profit caps for insurance companies and a precise definition of competition cod‑ified in Oklahoma law. She praised consumer protections included in the package but lamented the omission of measures that would directly address affordability.

“I appreciate any work to improve consumer protections for people buy‑ing insurance, but I refuse to accept that state law can’t make insurance more affordable,” Kirt said. “We know it can, and that’s what I’ll be working on this session.”

Rep. Andy Fugate, D-Del City, who mounted a separate interim study on homeowners insurance in the House of Representatives, echoed the praise of certain reforms but noted that the proposed barriers to taking legal ac‑tion conflicted with testimony that Mulready gave during Fugate’s study. Mulready admitted that Oklahoma does not have a lawsuit problem, Fu‑gate said.

Like Kirt, Fugate lamented that the proposals did not directly address rate controls.

“A fundamental missing piece is restoring the power of the insurance commissioner to ensure rates are sup‑ported by actuarial data,” Fugate said, referring to a portion of the Property and Casualty Loss Cost Rating Act. “Without that, Oklahoma rates will remain among the highest in the na‑tion.”

— “Oklahoma Families Deserve More” Oklahoma Watch contacted the four candidates who have launched campaigns to replace Mulready, who is term-limited and cannot run for re‑election.

The candidates include Chris Meri‑deth, a legislative affairs specialist with Farmers Insurance Co.; Marty Quinn, former chairman of the Senate insur‑ance committee with 40 years of in‑dustry experience; Greta Shuler, a 10year veteran of the insurance industry and a Shawnee city commissioner; and Bob Sullivan, a 20-year veteran of the insurance industry specializing in property and casualty insurance.

Merideth, Sullivan and Shuler re‑sponded.

In offering praise for a call for a homeowners bill of rights and for discounts for fortified construction, Merideth lauded the groundwork of the proposals but said that Oklaho‑ma must go further to address rising premiums, claim decision confusion and inconsistent standards that affect homeowners across the state.

A registered lobbyist for Farmers In‑surance from 2016 to 2023, Merideth called for movement in a new direc‑tion.

“Oklahoma can’t afford a reactive approach to insurance anymore,” Merideth said. “We need proactive leadership, clear statewide standards and a long-term resiliency strategy that lowers costs and strengthens our communities.”

Sullivan described the proposals as a solid starting point, and praised the legislative process for permitting dis‑cussion and refinement of ideas.

“I will be watching closely and hope to engage significantly on the cam‑paign trail,” Sullivan said. “We must make insurance fair again in Oklaho‑ma.”

Shuler repeated qualified praise of the proposals while pivoting to indi‑cate the complete absence of any sug‑gestion of changes to health care law. In particular, Shuler called attention to a lack of oversight of medical de‑cisionmaking processes that may re‑sult in insurers inserting themselves between patients and their doctors.

Of the department proposals, Shuler spoke as a homeowner who has her‑self experienced a total loss due to an Oklahoma tornado.

“We need stronger protections to ensure insurers meet their obliga‑tions, pay claims promptly, and treat Oklahomans with the respect they deserve during the hardest moments of their lives,” Shuler said. “These con‑sumerfirst reforms are still missing from this agenda, and I believe Okla‑homa families deserve more.”

— Ongoing Efforts

The Insurance Department press release said that the proposals an‑nounced on Dec. 10 are the result of cooperation with numerous interest‑ed parties.

“Insurance Commissioner Glen Mulready emphasized that the pro‑posals reflect ongoing efforts to col‑laborate with lawmakers, industry stakeholders and consumer advo‑cates,” the release reads.

Tedford said that he would welcome additional input from policyholders as the composition of legislation con‑tinues, adding that he expects to hear from insurance companies, the agent community advocates for tort reform.

“I would love to hear from consum‑er advocacy groups,” Tedford said. “I want to have a system where every‑body wins, where the policyholder is treated fairly on their claims.”

The OID can be reached at its Oklahoma City and Tulsa offices, at 405-521-2828 and 918-295-3700, re‑spectively. The department can be messaged here.