News Releases

Opening Brief Filed in Public Records Lawsuit Against Insurance Commissioner Lara & Agency Over Pay-to-Play Records

July 14, 2022  ·  Jerry Flanagan

Los Angeles, CA — Consumer Watchdog filed its Opening Brief in a California Public Records Act (“CPRA”) lawsuit against Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara and the...

The Department of Insurance Obstructs Access to Public Records Regarding “Connected Cars” in Wake of Industry Lobbying

May 17, 2022  ·  Jerry Flanagan

Los Angeles, CA – The Department of Insurance has engaged in a “pattern and practice of obstructing access to public records,” according to Consumer Watchdog.    ...

California Climate Insurance Disclosure Bill Stalls

April 18, 2022  ·  Carmen Balber

PUBLIC CITIZEN AND CONSUMER WATCHDOG RELEASED THE FOLLOWING TODAY – The California Assembly Insurance Committee has declined to hold a hearing on a bill that...

Consumer Groups Back Wildfire Mitigation Insurance Discounts, Call for Protection From Non-Renewals

April 13, 2022  ·  Pam Pressley

Insurance Commissioner Lara Must Close Loophole in Regulation Allowing Insurers to Ignore WIldfire Mitigation for Denial or Non-Renewal Decisions Los Angeles, CA – A regulation proposed...

Consumer Watchdog Calls on Insurance Commissioner Lara To Issue Refund Rules In Response to CA Supreme Court

February 16, 2022  ·  Pam Pressley

Los Angeles, CA — The California Supreme Court has refused to review a lower court ruling that stripped the Insurance Commissioner of critical powers granted...

Department of Insurance Changes Course on Email Deletion Policy that Threatened Records of Pay-to-Play Scandal Days After Consumer Watchdog Threatened to Go to Court

January 31, 2022  ·  Jerry Flanagan

The Department of Insurance pulled back a policy to delete agency email databases days after Consumer Watchdog warned it would go to court to stop...

New Evidence Reveals That Commissioner Lara and Top Staff Hid Communications About Meetings With Workers’ Compensation Insurer At Heart of Pay-to-Play Scandal

January 18, 2022  ·  Jerry Flanagan

Los Angeles, CA – Despite attempting to conceal it, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara and top lieutenant Bryant Henley communicated with two former lawmakers representing a workers’...

Groups Commend CVS’s Withdrawal of U.S. Supreme Court Challenge To HIV Rights

November 11, 2021  ·  Consumer Watchdog

Los Angeles, CA — CVS Health Corporation’s dismissal today of an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court of a health care civil rights lawsuit involving...

Ninth Circuit Reinstates HIV Discrimination Claims Against CVS Prescription Drug Mail-Order Program

December 9, 2020  ·  Jerry Flanagan

Los Angeles, CA — Today the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a lower court decision holding that five “John Doe” HIV patients could pursue a...

Farmers Insurance Is Caught Overcharging Its Most Loyal Customers in Violation of Proposition 103

May 16, 2019  ·  Harvey Rosenfield

Los Angeles, CA — Farmers Insurance systematically overcharged its most loyal, longtime California customers from 2008 to 2018, according to evidence uncovered as part of an...

Appellate Court Holds Mercury Insurance Accountable for Phony Premium Overcharges

May 7, 2019  ·  Pam Pressley

Los Angeles, CA — A state Court of Appeal in Orange County has upheld $27 million in civil penalties imposed by former Insurance Commissioner Dave...

Court Tentatively Upholds Prop 103 Rule Prohibiting Auto Insurance Companies From Making Consumers Pay For Branding/Advertising Such as Sporting Event Sponsorships and Naming Rights

January 9, 2015  ·  Pam Pressley

In a tentative ruling today, the Sacramento Superior Court rejected an insurance industry attack on regulations that limit the amount of advertising costs insurers can pass through to consumers in their premiums. The regulation is part of the landmark Prop 103 insurance reform initiative that has saved California drivers $102 billion since 1988, according to the Consumer Federation of America.