Consumer anger over rising insurance bills in Oklahoma is having an unusual effect in the political race for the state office of insurance commissioner: Four Republican candidates are threatening to curb industry rates.
Property insurance premiums have surged in Oklahoma due in part to the increased frequency and intensity of extreme-weather events. That has caused growing frustration in a conservative state that historically has taken a hands-off approach to insurance premiums, resulting in some of the highest rates in the nation.
The only Democrat in the race has vowed to bring down rates. The Republican candidates aren’t going that far — but they are promising to sharply scrutinize the industry as voters head to the polls for a primary election on Tuesday.
“Politicians [in Oklahoma] may be far right, but they do read polls,” said Bob Hunter, a former Texas insurance commissioner and director of insurance at the Consumer Federation of America.
Oklahomans’ aggravation dovetails with many homeowners’ feelings nationwide: From coastal states to the heartland, households find it increasingly difficult to get affordable insurance coverage — or any at all — as insurers react to climbing damage from hurricanes, wildfires, hailstorms and other hazards. Those concerns are reflected in the race in Oklahoma, where regulations have traditionally been overshadowed by free-market principles.
“You can see the insurers are very profitable, and there’s no reason for them to be charging what they’re charging,” said Greta Shuler, a city commissioner in Shawnee who’s running to be the industry’s top regulator as a Republican, at a recent debate. “We should have an insurance commissioner looking at those rates. And we haven’t.”
Oklahoma is one of 11 states that elects its insurance commissioner. Up to two candidates can advance from the Republican primary; they would face off in an August runoff before the general election in November.
The state has been “too easy to deal with” for insurers, said Bob Sullivan, an independent insurance agent who’s running as a Republican, adding that neighboring states make the industry work harder to justify rate hikes.
Sullivan said in an interview that if he’s elected commissioner, he would declare Oklahoma’s home insurance market “non-competitive” — skewed to favor a few large companies — giving the department the “strength to push back” against large rate increases.
Oklahoma is one of many states revisiting their approach to insurance markets as extreme weather and general cost inflation make policies more expensive, hard to get or both.
Leaders in both major political parties are questioning an article of faith about insurance: that the best way to keep prices low for consumers is to promote competition between companies, and that the state should not try to control prices.
Illinois, another state that has historically been laissez-faire toward the insurance industry, recently gave regulators new power to reject rate increases. California has loosened some of its long-standing restrictions on insurers’ ability to raise premiums after wildfires led insurers to flee the state en masse.
In Oklahoma, the average cost of home insurance has spiked to $5,736 a year, second-highest in the country, according to data provider Insurify. Rising risk from hail, wind and wildfire events are increasingly showing up in consumers’ bills.
The surging costs have put pressure on Oklahoma’s Republican-led Legislature to act. In the waning days of the legislative session last month, Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt signed a bill that will for the first time require insurers to explain why they’re asking regulators to approve higher rates.
The law takes effect in July 2027. Until then, insurers in Oklahoma can use the existing regulatory system, which allows them to raise rates when and how they see fit, as long as they notify the insurance department afterward.
Former State Sen. Marty Quinn (R), ex-chair of the Senate Insurance Committee, supported the new law. Now he’s running for insurance commissioner.
Quinn said at the recent debate that he would force insurance companies to hear “what our consumers are going through” and negotiate more affordable rates.
Chris Merideth, another candidate for the office, said the law will provide transparency that will help the public determine if rate hikes are needed. But he warned that overzealous efforts to control insurance companies’ prices could backfire.
“California tried to regulate out of [price increases],” Merideth, who worked for two decades at Farmers Insurance as a lobbyist and claims manager, said at the debate. “Their market collapsed. You can’t find insurance.”
Leading officials including state Attorney General Gentner Drummond (R), who is running for governor, have accused insurance companies of bilking Oklahomans.
Drummond has alleged that State Farm, the state’s largest home insurer, set up a secret internal program to deny legitimate claims for roofs that were damaged in hailstorms.
“I’ve taken on State Farm. Next to be taken on is Allstate,” Drummond said in a May debate among gubernatorial candidates.
State Farm, which has previously denied the allegation, couldn’t immediately be reached for comment. Allstate didn’t respond to a request for comment sent Monday evening.
“More government regulation will not bring additional insurance capital into the marketplace,” Chelsea Stallings, regional vice president for the Southwest at the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, said in an email.
Stallings said curbing excessive lawsuits against insurers, strengthening building codes and hardening homes against extreme weather would be more effective to court insurers.
Drummond and Sullivan, the candidate for insurance commissioner, have also criticized current Insurance Commissioner Glen Mulready (R ) for not doing enough to prevent companies from hiking rates.
The two candidates have demanded that Mulready hold a public hearing to consider if Oklahoma’s home insurance market is “competitive” — meaning that it’s functioning efficiently for both insurers and consumers.
Under Oklahoma law, if the department deems the market is not competitive, regulators gain new powers to scrutinize and potentially reject proposed rate increases. Legislative leaders have said that four insurance companies dominate the state market, giving them disproportionate power to inflate prices.
Mulready has repeatedly denied that the market isn’t competitive, citing indicators used by economists.
But he has scheduled a hearing for September in which multiple presenters will make their arguments to an independent administrative law judge selected by the insurance department, Mulready said in an interview. Thirty days later, the judge will render an opinion.
Drummond pushed Mulready to schedule the hearing for June. Mulready said he scheduled it for September, well after the primaries, because he didn’t “want this to be used as a political stunt.”
Mulready, who is exiting the office due to term limits, said he hopes the next insurance commissioner is “focused on maintaining a competitive free market that allows for more choices for Oklahoma and doesn’t go down a California-type path.”
