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A Forney tornado in 2012 leveled this house. Premiums have gone up along with profits for\u00a0insurers.<\/p>\n
Staff Photographer<\/p>\n
Your obsession often becomes my obsession.<\/p>\n
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With your alerts we investigated the rise in natural gas and electricity bills. We\u2019ve obsessed together about filing property tax\/appraisal protests, about roofers and door-to-door sales hucksters.<\/p>\n
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But only lately have we delved deeply into the shadowy world of insurance.<\/p>\n
Apparently,\u00a0complaints<\/a> about the industry aren\u2019t enough to spur fixes.<\/p>\n I only know of one major insurance reform law that emerged from the 2025 Texas Legislature, and it\u2019s not going to set the world on fire. The\u00a0new law<\/a> requires insurance companies to go beyond canceling your insurance. Now they must tell you why.<\/p>\n Make Dallas News a preferred source so your search results prioritize writing by actual people, not AI.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Add Preferred Source<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n The\u00a0Senior Source<\/a> of Dallas said in a statement that the new law adds some transparency and \u201cand it will empower consumers to make informed decisions about their coverage and financial planning.\u201d<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n A start<\/p>\n It\u2019s a start for insurance reform in Texas. Next year, the Texas Legislature should acknowledge\u00a0the insurance crisis<\/a> \u2014 high premiums, massive claim denials<\/a>, obscene CEO compensation salaries, and weakened powers of state regulators.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a nonpartisan issue. Zoe Middleton, a social policy adviser for the Union of Concerned Scientists<\/a>, told me, \u201cThere are people on both sides of the aisle that recognize this is an untenable situation.\u201d<\/p>\n She criticized the insurance industry for dodging reforms.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cBy digging their heels in and not coming to the table they\u2019re really allowing risk to grow in a dangerous way,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Republican reformer<\/p>\n Here\u2019s where\u00a0the danger<\/a> comes in for insurance companies. One of the most powerful state senators is Charles Schwertner, R-Georgetown. He introduced a bill<\/a> in the last session to strengthen the regulatory powers of the Texas Department of Insurance<\/a>. This is no small thing, considering Schwertner is chairman of the committee that reviews insurance bills. His bill passed the Senate, but it died in the House.<\/p>\n Similarly, a\u00a0bill<\/a> submitted by Texas Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, D-San Antonio, a top Democratic lawmaker, walked down the same reform path. But it, too, was blocked in the House.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The insurance industry wants a different law. David\u00a0Sampson, president and CEO of American Property Casualty Insurance Association<\/a>, wrote in a letter to The Dallas Morning News:\u00a0\u201cNext state legislators should pass reasonable legal reforms that will limit jackpot jury awards in lawsuits.\u201d<\/p>\n He justifies this by saying, \u201cAfter two years of big rate increases due to inflation and an increase in catastrophic weather events, home insurance rate increases leveled off in 2025.\u201d<\/p>\n I fear limiting jury awards would only make matters worse.<\/p>\n Prior approval needed<\/p>\n Ware Wendell, director of\u00a0Texas Watch,<\/a> a pro-consumer lobbying organization, said the state needs to acknowledge that the \u201cfile and use\u201d regulatory power is too weak. In that, companies file their rates and then immediately use them.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n They don\u2019t have to wait for regulatory approval. That gives insurance companies too much power, he says.<\/p>\n He wishes Texas would switch to the \u201cprior approval\u201d system. Companies would need approval before, not after, launching new rates.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need a change,\u201d he says. \u201cTDI needs more tools to stop overcharges before they start.\u201d Homeowners can\u2019t take more rate shocks. His group hosts a petition<\/a> on its website for you to show support for prior approval.<\/p>\n Answering my questions, the state insurance department told me last year that \u201cTDI hasn\u2019t disproved a homeowners rate filing from those submitted since 2017.\u201d<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The agency says there is some oversight: \u201cTDI requested more information on 77% of property and casualty rate filings in 2024,\u201d TDI told me.\u00a0<\/p>\n When a rate filing can lead to disapproval,\u00a0TDI asks questions and sends its objections back to the insurer.<\/p>\n \u201cInsurers then work to change the filing and bring it into compliance with state law,\u201d\u00a0TDI told me. \u201cInsurers may also withdraw the filing and file a new rate that does meet state law.\u201d<\/p>\n By doing this,\u00a0TDI says it has saved Texans millions of dollars.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u2018A reasonable profit\u2019<\/p>\n Doug Quinn, who directs the\u00a0American Policyholder Association,<\/a> which investigates fraud allegations committed by insurance companies, asks companies: \u201cWhy can\u2019t you just be happy with a reasonable profit?\u201d<\/p>\n He said 1 out of 7 homeowners doesn\u2019t have insurance because they can\u2019t afford it.<\/p>\n By signing up, you agree to our Terms Of Use<\/a> and acknowledge that your information will be used as described in our Privacy Policy<\/a>.<\/p>\n From 2024 to 2025, insurance companies\u2019 profits jumped from $23 billion to $65 billion in underwriting gains, Quinn said. The industry also made more than $150 billion in profits from investments.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The insurance industry, Quinn told me, is \u201cone of the wealthiest and most powerful industries in the country, so don\u2019t expect it to get fixed anytime soon. Not until ordinary people stand up and demand something be done.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"image\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1775016909_917_rawImage.jpg\" "\\"#\\"")
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