the Insurance Commissioner's restriction on credit scoring will be extended for another year.

According to the Washington Court of Appeals, the Insurance Commissioner's restriction on credit scoring will be extended for another year.

Washington Insurance Commissioner M.K had previously outlawed the use of credit scores to help determine insurance premiums for automobiles, rental properties, and homeowners' insurance; however, a state court recently signed an order formally rescinding that prohibition.

The two cases were transferred to Judge Indu Thomas' Thurston County courtroom, and any new limits imposed as a result of the consolidation were put on hold for the time being.

The judge initially granted the order to suspend proceedings because the new rules were set to take effect in early March, and the order was later modified.

The American Property Casualty Insurance Association, along with co-petitioners such as the Professional Insurance Agents of Washington and the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of Washington, among others, filed an appeal of Kreidler's permanent rule prohibiting the use of credit-based insurance scoring in Thurston County Superior Court in February. A separate petition was filed by the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, and the court consolidated the cases on the petitions of the American Property Casualty Insurers Association, the Property Insurance Association, the IIABW, and the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, all of which had filed separate petitions.

A statement issued by the trade associations in response to this was released:

More than a million households in Washington state are seeing their rates rise as a result of Commissioner M.K's regulatory activities. The court, in a unanimous ruling, merged the legal challenges, transferred the separately filed petitions to a single court, and granted an instant stay of the permanent rule. So the court has officially approved the agreed stay, and the result is that credit-based insurance scores will continue to be available for use in Washington state until a final decision on the merits is made and any future appeals are resolved, whichever comes first.

"The restrictions are onerous and unnecessary," according to the statement, which also claims that they "undermine the fundamentals of risk-based pricing."

made the following statement, which was made public:

The parties involved in this case have unanimously agreed that it is in everyone's best interests to reach a final decision on the rule as soon as possible, and I am grateful for their cooperation in this matter. In the Thurston County Superior Court, which is the most suitable forum for reviewing the vital consumer protections contained in this regulation, it is anticipated that a ruling will be reached swiftly.