State Farm secured four of the 10 most notable calculated premium changes by US private auto insurers in the first quarter, according to an S&P Global Market Intelligence analysis. Subsidiary State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. led the pack with a 24.9% rate increase in New York, resulting in a calculated premium change of approximately $679.8 million. This marked the most impactful rate hike of the period, affecting about 1.75 million policyholders.
The same subsidiary also implemented significant rate hikes of 11.9% in Minnesota, 11.2% in Colorado and 6.6% in Ohio. The rate change in Colorado has been active for over a year, while the increase in Ohio took effect in December 2023.
CSAA Insurance Exchange secured the second-most impactful rate increase for the first quarter, with a 9.5% hike in California translating into a calculated premium change of $272.1 million and impacting over 1.76 million policyholders.
It's important to note that all figures are based on as-reported numbers filed in each subsidiary's state rate filings and do not represent final projections of additional premiums insurers may receive in the upcoming year.
US states employ various rate regulation mechanisms including prior approval, modified prior approval, file and use, and use and file; some states do not require explicit regulatory approval before insurers can implement new rates.
Liberty Mutual received six approvals for rate increases exceeding 20% on books of business worth $20 million or more during this period. Half of these changes were above 25%, with one reaching a high of 40%. This insurer's highest increase was recorded in Connecticut at 40%, resulting in a calculated premium change of $32.7 million and impacting over 33,000 policyholders.
Tesla Property & Casualty Inc., which began writing insurance business in Texas during Q1 of 2023, made the list of notable approved rate changes for private auto carriers in Q1 2024 with a rate change of 22%. This change went into effect in June 2023 for new business and in August 2023 for renewal business, translating into a calculated premium change of $11.6 million.