POOLMAN PUSHES BILL TO REDEFINE 'ADVERSE ACTION' OF INSURANCE SCORING

A bill supported by North Dakota Insurance Commissioner Jim Poolman would limit insurers’ use of credit scoring by expanding the definition of the prohibited “adverse actions” they can take based on the information.

The proposal, HB 1335, was debated in the House Industry, Business and Labor Committee, chaired by State Rep. George J. Keiser. The bill would redefine an adverse action to include “an action by which an insurer provides a quote or an offer for insurance at less favorable terms than an insurer would have quoted or offered an applicant or insured if the applicant’s or insured’s credit report or credit-based insurance score had been more favorable.”

The bill also defines as an adverse action the instance in which an insurer provides a premium discount based on the applicant’s credit-based insurance score if the discount is not the maximum discount available from the insurer.