2022 Georgia Code
Title 33 - Insurance
Chapter 9 - Regulation of Rates, Underwriting Rules, and Related Organizations
§ 33-9-4. Standards Applicable to Making and Use of Rates

The following standards shall apply to the making and use of rates pertaining to all classes of insurance to which this chapter is applicable:

1. Rates shall not be excessive or inadequate, as defined in this Code section, nor shall they be unfairly discriminatory;
2. No rate shall be held to be excessive unless such rate is unreasonably high for the insurance provided and a reasonable degree of competition does not exist in the area with respect to the classification to which such rate is applicable; provided, however, with respect to rate filings involving an increase in rates, no rate for personal private passenger motor vehicle insurance shall be held to be excessive unless such rate is unreasonably high for the insurance provided and a reasonable degree of competition does not exist;
3. No rate shall be held inadequate unless it is unreasonably low for the insurance provided and continued use of it would endanger solvency of the insurer, or unless the use of such rate by the insurer using such rate has, or will, if continued, tend to destroy competition or create a monopoly;
4. Consideration shall be given to the extent applicable to past and prospective loss experience within and outside this state, to conflagration and catastrophe hazards, to a reasonable margin for underwriting profit and contingencies, to past and prospective expenses both country wide and those specially applicable to this state, to the insurer’s average yield from investment income, and to all other factors, including judgment factors, deemed relevant within and outside this state; and, in the case of fire insurance rates, consideration may be given to the experience of the fire insurance business during the most recent five-year period;
5. Consideration may also be given, in the making and use of rates, to dividends, savings, or unabsorbed premium deposits allowed or returned by insurers to their policyholders, members, or subscribers;
6. The systems of expense provisions included in the rates for use by any insurer or group of insurers may differ from those of other insurers or groups of insurers to reflect the operating methods of any such insurer or group with respect to any kind of insurance or with respect to any subdivision or combination thereof;
7. Risks may be grouped by classifications for the establishment of rates and minimum premiums. Classification rates may be modified to produce rates for individual risks in accordance with rating plans which establish standards for measuring variations in hazards or expense provisions, or both. Such standards may measure any difference among risks that have a probable effect upon losses or expenses. Classifications or modifications of classifications of risks may be established based upon size, expense, management, individual experience, location or dispersion of hazard, or any other reasonable considerations. Such classifications and modifications shall apply to all risks under the same or substantially the same circumstances or conditions; provided, however, the Commissioner shall establish the maximum amount of any such modification;
8. Nothing contained in this Code section or elsewhere in this chapter shall be construed to repeal or modify Chapter 6 of this title, relating to unfair trade practices, and any rate, rating classification, rating plan or schedule, or variation thereof established in violation of Chapter 6 of this title shall, in addition to the consequences stated in Chapter 6 of this title or elsewhere, be deemed violative of this Code section;
9. No insurer shall base any standard or rating plan on vehicle insurance, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, upon race, creed, or ethnic extraction; and
10. No insurer shall base any standard or rating plan on vehicle insurance, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, upon any physical disability of an insured unless the disability directly impairs the ability of the insured to drive a motor vehicle.

History. Code 1933, § 56-507, enacted by Ga. L. 1967, p. 684, § 1; Ga. L. 1978, p. 1423, § 1; Ga. L. 1978, p. 1936, § 1; Ga. L. 1980, p. 1011, § 2; Ga. L. 1982, p. 3, § 33; Ga. L. 1987, p. 911, § 1; Ga. L. 1988, p. 13, § 33; Ga. L. 1991, p. 1608, § 1.5; Ga. L. 1995, p. 1302, § 13; Ga. L. 2008, p. 1192, § 3/SB 276.

Code Commission notes.

Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 1987, “country wide” was substituted for “country-wide” in paragraph (4).

Editor’s notes.

Ga. L. 1991, p. 1608, § 3.2, effective April 17, 1991, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: “(a) Each insurer shall file its proposed forms, manuals, underwriting rules, rates, and rating plans for coverages under motor vehicle insurance policies to be issued, issued for delivery, delivered, or renewed on and after October 1, 1991, with the Commissioner of Insurance for such examination and approval as is required by law. The Commissioner shall not approve such filings unless such filings contain optional medical payments coverage. Rates and rating plans for motor vehicle insurance coverages filed pursuant to this subsection shall reflect a reduction of the rates or rating plans for such coverages on file with the Commissioner as of January 28, 1991, of not less than 15 percent, as compared to rates in effect for coverages required to be offered by the former ‘Georgia Motor Vehicle Accident Reparations Act,’ with the exception of physical damage coverages, as specified in paragraph (3) of subsection (a) of former Code Section 33-34-5 and third-party property damage coverages. On October 1, 1991, the Commissioner shall reduce by 15 percent or such higher amount as he determines appropriate, after notice and hearing as required by law, any rate or rating plan for such coverages under motor vehicle insurance policies for which no filing has been received.

“(b) Any insurer aggrieved by the rate filing required pursuant to subsection (a) of this section may petition the Commissioner for a hearing to grant relief from the rate filing as the result of extraordinary circumstances. The insurer shall have the burden of proof to establish the extraordinary circumstances which justify relief. A hearing conducted pursuant to this subsection shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 2 of Title 33. Upon conclusion of any hearing conducted pursuant to this subsection, the Commissioner shall enter an order specifying the rates to be used by the insurer and shall indicate in his order all factors entering into a decision to relieve the insurer from full compliance with the provisions of subsection (a) of this section.”