Glossary

Insurance commissioner

The official who runs a state's insurance department and enforces its insurance laws; elected in some states, appointed in most.

Also called: commissioner of insurance, superintendent of insurance, insurance director

An insurance commissioner is the chief insurance regulator of a state. The title varies, including superintendent and director, but the job is the same: run the state department of insurance, license insurers and agents, oversee rates and policy forms, monitor insurers' solvency, and enforce consumer protection and claim-handling laws.

Most commissioners are appointed by the governor. A minority of states elect them, including California, Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina and Washington, which can make insurance prices a campaign issue. In California, voters made the office elective through proposition 103 in 1988, the same measure that requires the commissioner to approve auto rates before insurers use them.

Commissioners can approve, reject or order changes to rate filings, depending on the state's system; issue regulations and bulletins; fine insurers; and take control of insurers in financial trouble. They work together through the NAIC, which drafts model laws that states can adopt in their own form. For a driver, the commissioner's office is where to check an insurer's license, find rate comparisons and consumer guides, and file a complaint about a claim, a cancellation or a billing problem.

Last reviewed October 4, 2026

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Related terms

State department of insurance The state agency that licenses insurers and agents, reviews rates and policy forms, monitors solvency and handles consumer complaints. NAIC The standard-setting organization of the chief insurance regulators of the 50 states, D.C. and five U.S. territories, founded in 1871. Rate filing The package of proposed rates, rating rules and supporting data an insurer submits to a state regulator when it wants to change prices. Prior approval A rate regulation system in which insurers must get the state regulator's approval before using new rates or rating rules. Proposition 103 The 1988 California ballot measure that requires approval of auto rates before use, mandates a Good Driver Discount and made the commissioner elected.

Related guides

California Proposition 103 explained What California's 1988 Prop 103 did: the 20% rollback, prior approval of rates, the Good Driver Discount, ranked rating factors and paid consumer intervenors. How car insurance rate approval works How states review car insurance rates: prior approval, file-and-use, use-and-file and flex rating, what regulators check, and how to follow a filing yourself. How to file a complaint against a car insurance company When and how to complain to your state insurance department about a car insurer, what to include, what regulators can and cannot do, and other options. The NAIC complaint index: how to look up an insurer How the NAIC complaint index compares an insurer's complaints with its size, how to find it in the NAIC's free search tool, and how to read it fairly. The NAIC explained What the National Association of Insurance Commissioners is, how it writes model laws without regulating anyone, and the free NAIC tools drivers can use. What your state insurance department does What state insurance regulators do for drivers: licensing, rate and form review, solvency checks, complaints and fraud, plus contacts for all 50 states and D.C.