As I reported on www.nytrafficticket.com in June 2008, New York’s Legislature approved a bill which lets automobile insurance companies raise rates by up to 5% without regulatory approval.
Checking back almost a year later reveals that 44 insurance companies have raised their rates (or plan to do so), and 28 of them have raised their rates 4.9 to 5%, at or close to the maximum. Clearly, 2007’s $8.2 million in insurance-industry lobbyist spending has paid off, especially the $67,000 pocketed by the bill’s sponsor Joseph Morelle (D Rochester).