Georgia Insurance Commissioner Says State Farm’s 10% Rate Cut Is a ‘Major Win’ for Drivers

ATLANTA — Georgia Insurance and Fire Safety Commissioner John F. King said the recently approved auto insurance rate reductions for State Farm customers mark one of the most significant steps the state has taken to reduce costs for drivers and he hopes it will force other insurers to follow.

King announced Wednesday that State Farm would reduce auto insurance rates in Georgia by another 3 percent, bringing the total reductions approved over the past year to more than 10 percent.

His office estimates the changes will save Georgians about $400 million a year, or about $190 per insured vehicle.

For Georgia drivers facing rising prices on almost every household expense, King said the savings come at a critical time.

“People are crushed,” King said. He added: “Food, raw materials, everything is increasing. It is our duty to act on all possible levers to reduce costs for families.”

King said the reductions are the result of a year of consumer-focused reforms, strengthening enforcement and implementing civil justice changes that he said will stabilize the state’s insurance environment.

Georgia ranks third in the nation for insurance fraud — a burden that King said is ultimately borne by consumers.

“When people commit insurance fraud, insurance companies pass the cost on to consumers,” he said. “Georgia families typically pay between $400 and $700 more each year because of fraud. I am determined to reduce that number.”

King said his office has stepped up investigations targeting deliberate fraud, not paperwork errors, but “people who are deliberately trying to cheat the system.”

He said those efforts, combined with civil justice reform legislation that took effect this summer, have helped reduce what insurers see as major risk factors.

Even though the reforms are less than six months old, King said businesses are already responding.

“It’s a leap of faith for insurance companies,” he said. “There’s not a lot of data yet, but they realize Georgia is moving in the right direction.”

King pointed out that Georgia law does not allow the insurance commissioner to simply order companies to reduce their prices.

“I wish it was a simple process,” he said. “Most people think I can dictate prices. I don’t have that authority.”

Instead, he said the state’s competitive market limits when it can reject a rate request. His influence comes from showing that anti-fraud, consumer protection and legal reforms reduce insurers’ costs, and then pressuring companies to reflect these changes in premiums.

“If fighting fraud and fighting abuse gives me the ability to negotiate more forcefully, then that’s what I’ll do,” King said. “I don’t work for insurance companies. I work for the consumer.”

King said State Farm’s decision sets a bar he intends to use in ongoing negotiations with other major carriers.

“Now with this announcement, it gives me additional tools to put pressure on other insurance companies,” he said. “I don’t know if they’ll match State Farm, but I’m doing my best to make sure they understand the line has been drawn.”

He warned that if states fail to strike the right balance on affordability, businesses could shrink their footprints — something he says Georgia wants to avoid.

“We want to keep insurance companies in business and in the market,” King said. “If it becomes prohibitive, they leave, as we saw in California, and consumers have fewer choices.”

King said he hoped this week’s announcement signals a longer-term shift toward affordability and transparency in Georgia’s insurance market.

“It’s a good sign,” he said. “We are moving in the right direction.”

He encouraged consumers who feel they have been treated unfairly by an insurer to contact his office.

“We work for the consumer,” King said. “We are here to serve the community.”

You can file a consumer insurance complaint here.