Kuderer fines USAA, Allstate $230,000 for claim handling violations
OLYMPIA, Wash. — Washington state Insurance Commissioner Patty Kuderer fined two major property and casualty insurance companies a total of $230,000.
Kuderer’s office fined USAA Casualty Insurance Co. $140,000 for unfair or deceptive acts or practices in how it handled auto claims and fined Allstate Vehicle and Property Insurance Co. $90,000 for claim handling violations and for not following the OIC’s premium change transparency rule.
“We take our role as a consumer protection agency seriously,” Kuderer said. “These orders, and the actions we’ve taken against insurers for failing to meet their obligations to policyholders when processing their claims, are a testament to that work.”
Kuderer’s office has also updated state rules for minimum claim handling standards. Those changes take effect on Oct. 18.
From April through August, Kuderer’s office issued $495,200 in fines for violations of insurance laws.
USAA fined $140,000 for unfair claims handling
Kuderer’s office fined USAA $140,000 for unfair or deceptive acts or practices in how it handled auto claims.
In June 2024, the OIC reviewed some of USAA’s auto claims after finding 445 claim complaints from consumers between 2019 and 2024. The OIC reviewed 125 complaints filed from January 2023 to April 2024 and found at least one potential law or rule violation on 31 of the associated auto claims.
USAA confirmed 19 of those violations, which included:
- Not responding to consumers and acting timely on their claims (11 violations).
- Not using reasonable standards and investigating consumers’ claims within the legal timeframe (11 violations).
- Not completing investigations of claims within the 30-day legal timeframe (four violations).
- Refusing to pay claims without a reasonable investigation (five violations).
- Failing to include all applicable taxes and fees in a claim settlement (one violation).
- Not letting a consumer know they needed more time to determine if their claim should be accepted (one violation).
After the OIC reviewed a complaint in March 2024 and found the company didn’t include the applicable taxes and fees in its settlement offer, the OIC requested information on how many of USAA’s total loss settlements over the previous two years had the same issue. The company reviewed its data and issued payments on 158 claims, totaling $88,241, within two months of the review. USAA also reported that it corrected the issue to prevent it from happening again.
Allstate fined $90,000 for claim handling violations
Kuderer’s office fined Allstate $90,000 for claims handling and premium transparency violations. In June 2024, after receiving a high number of complaints from consumers about how their claims were handled, the OIC reviewed some of Allstate’s claims.
The OIC reviewed 108 claims from a database of 3,040 and found nine of those claims contained a total of 16 violations.
The violations included:
- Not using reasonable standards for claim processing and payment (eight violations).
- Not responding to consumers and acting within the legal timeframe on their claims (three violations).
- Not completing investigations within the 30-day legal timeframe (two violations).
- Misrepresenting important facts when issuing a payment to a consumer for much less than its own estimate (one violation).
The OIC’s review also showed the company did not include the required premium change transparency language on home insurance declarations for 86,705 policies — 86,136 of which had a premium increase on renewal. The policies were issued between April 15, 2024, and April 22, 2025.
The Insurance Commissioner’s premium change transparency rule went into effect on June 1, 2024, but at that point companies were required to send renewal notices 45 days before the renewal date. The law was updated, with the renewal notice requirement extended to 60 days, in 2025.
About the OIC
Kuderer’s office oversees Washington’s insurance industry to ensure that individuals, companies, agents, and brokers follow state laws designed to protect consumers. Since 2001, the office has assessed more than $46 million in fines, which are directed to the state’s general fund to pay for state services.
The Office of the Insurance Commissioner publishes disciplinary orders against companies, agents, and brokers. Consumers can also look up complaints against insurance companies.
For an insurance question or complaint, you may contact Kuderer’s consumer advocates online or by phone at 800-562-6900.
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