Insurance Regulatory Changes and Compliance

The NAIC Financial Stability (E) Task Force manages the macroprudential supervisory component of the solvency framework. Its work includes monitoring industry macroprudential risk, maintaining supervisory tools, and identifying data gaps and disclosure needs. The task force also lists NAIC media and staff contacts.

Aug 12

The NAIC says a voluntary natural catastrophe and resiliency survey is available for states and territories to use at their discretion. In participating jurisdictions, insurers with at least $100 million in direct written premium countrywide must complete it. The survey is administered by the California Department of Insurance on behalf of participating states.

Aug 14

WCIRB said California commercial premium leveled off in 2025, but the report shows advisory pure premium rates rose for the first time in a decade. A further 6.6% increase is approved to take effect September 1, 2026. The report also noted a rise in Connecticut claims frequency.

Aug 17

California small businesses are facing insurer non-renewals as major carriers have paused new business property applications since May 2023 and are dropping roughly 42,000 commercial apartment policies and tens of thousands of business-owner policies. The guide says California law and proposed bills would require six months’ notice, specific documented reasons, and state-specific handling of non-renewals. It advises businesses to keep the letter, envelope, and postmark.

Aug 13

Seven states enacted 2026 laws governing AI in health insurance coverage decisions: Alabama, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Utah, and Washington. The laws generally require human review, limit AI as the sole basis for denials or downgrades, and add disclosure or reporting duties. Effective dates range from June 11, 2026 in Washington to January 1, 2028 in Illinois.

Aug 12

New York’s 2026 tort reform took effect on May 26 for actions and proceedings commenced on or after that date. DFS also required insurers with pending auto rate filings to reflect projected savings from the reforms and amend filings by August 31, 2026 using a new Exhibit TR-1. A separate change on November 27, 2026 will bar nonbusiness auto carriers from taking an overall average increase of up to 5% without prior approval.

Aug 13

Kansas law requires insurers to file manuals of classifications, rules, rates, rating plans, policy forms, and modifications with the commissioner, with exceptions for certain inland marine risks and special commercial lines risks. The statute exempts excess or umbrella risks, large risks, and other commissioner-designated special risks from filing requirements. It defines large risk by property value, annual revenue, or paid premium thresholds.

Aug 13

Nevada’s Senate Bill 317 will raise the workers’ compensation payroll cap from $36,000 to $98,433.60 per person per year. The new cap takes effect October 1, 2026 and applies to new and renewal policies. The law also requires the cap to be updated annually based on the state’s maximum average monthly wage.

Aug 10

California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara announced that new transparency and accountability reforms are now in effect for the state’s insurance rate review process. The regulation expands public access to information, clarifies intervenor participation standards, and strengthens oversight of costs that can be passed on to policyholders. Lara called it the biggest modernization of the intervenor process since Proposition 103 in 1988.

Aug 11

Delaware’s hospital oversight board approved new rules requiring hospitals to explain their finances annually as state spending rises. The regulations preserve disclosure of revenue and workforce data, but let systems aggregate much of the information instead of breaking it out in finer detail. The board kept a requirement to show revenues by commercial carrier, while allowing those amounts to be grouped under one tab without naming insurers.

Aug 14

California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara ordered insurers to keep residential property coverage for more than 64,000 policyholders affected by the Gann Fire after Governor Gavin Newsom’s August 6 emergency declaration. The one-year moratorium bars cancellations and non-renewals within the fire perimeter and 22 adjoining ZIP codes. It also extends, for the first time under SB 547, to certain commercial property policies tied to residential uses.

Aug 14

Virginia Insurance Commissioner Scott White said regulators are focusing on insurers’ use of private credit, AI, and homeowners’ insurance trends. He said the NAIC is piloting an AI risk evaluation supplement in 12 states and building a framework for oversight of third-party data and model vendors. White said the work builds on NAIC AI principles and its model bulletin.

Aug 13

Colonial Gardens Nursing Home appealed an order that upheld the Pennsylvania Compensation Rating Bureau’s reclassification of the facility for workers’ compensation risk. The court said the Insurance Commissioner’s authority covered the system of classifications and rates, not review of an individual employer’s classification. The appeal was dismissed after the court found the commissioner lacked jurisdiction.

Aug 11

Utah repealed Rule R590-272, ending annual commission compensation reporting for insurance producers that sell or place health benefit plans for large customers. Colorado also issued Emergency Regulation 26-E-02, waiving prior authorization for durable medical equipment and allowing one early prescription refill for people affected by specified wildfires or any declared wildfire emergency in 2026.

Aug 5

Washington Insurance Commissioner Patty Kuderer issued an emergency order on August 3 to give wildfire relief to policyholders. Admitted insurers must provide 45-day premium grace periods, waive late and reinstatement fees, and not cancel policies for nonpayment unless the policyholder directs it. The order also extends nonrenewal notice periods to 120 days for property coverage and 60 days for auto coverage.

Aug 4

New York regulators approved another workers’ compensation loss cost decrease, marking the eleventh straight year of reductions. The New York Compensation Insurance Rating Board filed the annual indication on May 7, 2026, and the Department of Financial Services approved it on July 15, 2026. The 21.9% overall decrease takes effect October 1, 2026, and applies to policies renewing on or after that date.

Aug 5

The NAIC adopted its model bulletin on artificial intelligence systems by insurers on December 4, 2023, and it does not ban AI-assisted insurance decisions. Instead, it says AI-supported actions remain subject to insurance law, including unfair-trade-practice and unfair-discrimination rules. The bulletin calls for written AI programs, governance, risk management, internal controls, and records regulators can review in examinations or investigations.

Aug 4

California workers’ compensation rates are set to rise for policies effective September 1, 2026, after the WCIRB initially filed for a 10.4% average increase in advisory pure premium rates. Regulators approved a 6.6% benchmark, but the filing cited higher projected claim costs and medical inflation. The story also says SB 171 tightens eligibility for the Subsequent Injuries Benefits Trust Fund and adds stricter documentation rules for claims on or after January 1, 2026.

Aug 2

Florida law requires insurers writing workers’ compensation and employer’s liability coverage to file manuals of classifications, rules, rates, rating plans, and any changes with the state office. Filings must state the proposed effective date and coverage, and the office may request supporting information within 15 days if needed. Filing records are public, and rating-organization meetings on Florida rate changes must be held in the state with advance public notice.

Aug 4

Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner Glen Mulready said 2026 rule changes took effect on July 25, 2026. The bulletin says insurers must now give at least 60 days’ notice before cancelling or not renewing homeowners or other personal residential coverage, with shorter notice in certain specified cases. The changes also modernize filings for redomestication, holding companies and health maintenance organizations.

Jul 29

A July 20, 2026 industry report said EIOPA completed its Solvency II Review mandate on July 15 and published eight sets of guidelines and draft technical standards. It also said EIOPA issued the first EEA-wide supervisory factsheet on insurer private credit and equity exposures on July 16, while the IAIS published updated recovery and resolution papers and risk-based solvency transition notes. The FSB’s consultation on responsible AI adoption closed on July 22.

Jul 20

State regulators are reviewing the first reserve adequacy reports filed under Actuarial Guideline 55, which targets offshore and captive reinsurance transactions. Adopted in 2025, the guideline requires life insurers to submit reserve analyses for certain agreements when the reinsurer does not report to U.S. regulators. Regulators are also assessing whether VM-22, effective for fixed annuities issued in 2026 and later, will reduce incentives to use offshore or captive reinsurance.

Jul 21