Insurance Expert Pulls Back Veil on Common Trick Used by Michigan’s Insurance Lobby

LANSING, Mich.—(Sept. 25, 2025)—Websites ranking insurance premiums by state—which are often touted by insurance lobbyists who are overly eager to show any progress in Michigan—don’t reflect the actual costs paid by Michigan drivers, according to a nationally recognized insurance analyst. 

Doug Heller, director of insurance for the Consumer Federation of America, dispelled common myths surrounding Michigan’s 2019 auto insurance reform during an appearance on a recent episode of the MIRS Monday Podcast.

“Whatever the insurance lobbyists want to try to convince us of, nobody paying premiums feel relief,” Heller said. “It’s only some politicians and insurance lobbyists who are cheering the insurance market in Michigan.”  

Speaking to MIRS Monday Podcast host Samantha Shriber, Heller pulled back the veil on how the false narratives are set in motion. Case in point: A recent Bankrate report claims that Michigan no longer has the highest insurance in the nation for auto insurance and had dropped to the sixth most expensive state. 

“Reports like these use poor sources of data that come from insurance websites engaged in marketing, not data analysis,” Heller said. “If you bypass the marketing figures and instead examine public rate filings that insurance companies are required to submit to states, you’ll find that Michigan drivers have actually paid about $2.5 billion more in premiums since 2022.” 

Ironically, this overall increase in premiums coincided with the implementation of several changes that reduced benefits to Michigan policy holders.

Heller also shed light on claims made by the auto insurance lobby that the 2019 law forbids insurance companies from basing rates on the credit scores of drivers. In reality, the law simply created a new designation called a “credit-based insurance score,” which essentially achieves the same outcome as a credit rating.

“Most people don't realize that your credit score will oftentimes have more of an impact on your insurance than your driving safety record,” Heller said. “Insurance companies put more weight on your credit history in Michigan than almost anywhere else in the country because regulators and lawmakers have not clamped down on that totally egregious pricing practice.”

CPAN President Margaret Kroese said Heller’s comments provide a compelling reminder of the need for swift legislative action. 

“It's time for regulators and lawmakers to take a stand and balance the system,” Kroese said. “When the state mandates drivers buy policies, it has an obligation to make sure those policies are honored and fairly priced. We need an end to discriminatory pricing practices like credit-based scoring, and we need real accountability to fulfil the policy’s promise when there are injury and collision claims. There remains a lot of work to do.”