Ballot Measure 42 repeals restrictions in current law on the use of credit information in setting insurance rates and premiums, and bans the use of credit information on establishing insurance rates or premiums. (Source.)
Credit scoring is a technique insurance companies use to predict the risk of insuring customers. They claim lower credit scores correlate with higher risk. Bill Sizemore, the main author of Measure 42, disagrees. If Sizemore is right, then an insurance company that uses credit scoring is doing a poor job of predicting risk: it will charge some customers too much (resulting in fewer customers) and other customers too little (resulting in not collecting enough to cover the risk). Insurance companies have no interest in either result. If Sizemore is right, an insurance company that doesn’t use credit scoring would have a business advantage. Sizemore is concerned that insurance companies create a “secret scoring model” in predicting risk. Where he sees nefarious intent, I see insurance companies protecting their trade secrets. If insurance companies didn’t believe credit scoring gives them a competitive advantage, they wouldn’t use it, they wouldn’t try to keep it from their competitors. And it only gives them a competitive advantage if it works.
Allowing insurance companies to compete is good for those of us who buy insurance. I urge you to vote “no” on Measure 42.
Source: The Oregon Secretary of State publishes a Voters’ Pamphlet which lists all of the Oregon statewide measures, including ballot title, text of measure, explanatory statement (excepted above), and arguments in favor and opposition.
Related:
| Issue | blogan Recommends |
| Measure 39 | Yes |
| Measure 40 | No |
| Measure 41 | Yes |
| Measure 42 | No |
| Measure 43 | Yes |
| Measure 44 | Yes |
| Measure 45 | No |
| Measure 46 | No |
| Measure 47 | No |
| Measure 48 | No |
[tags]Oregon, General Election, Measure 42[/tags]
