Your rates are more likely to go up if you vote "no" on Measure 42; even if you have good credit. EVERY nonprofit and government consumer protection agency is OPPOSED to insurers using consumer credit scores to determine insurance rates. ONLY the insurance industry is in favor of insurers using credit scores to determine insurance rates!

A Consumer Reports Magazine article "Car insurance for less", published in the October 2002 issue, states: "Since 1980, premiums have soared 252 percent. That's twice the rate of overall inflation. And this year rates are headed up again, another 6.8 percent nationwide."

The article goes on to state: "Insurers blame rising costs, although it's difficult to understand exactly what costs they are talking about. While medical inflation has risen sharply and steadily over the years, medical bills make up only 9 percent of annual auto-insurance payouts, according to the Insurance Information Institute. And the cost of auto bodywork and repair parts, another key component of insurer outlays, has increased at only a fraction of the pace of premium prices."

What are some of the causes? Use of consumer credit scores is suspected:

• Consumers Union, the nonprofit that publishes Consumer Reports Magazine, is dedicated to protecting consumers. In their August 2006 issue this article, Caution! The secret score behind your auto insurance, provides ample validation for why you should vote YES of measure 42:
  
  Article Summary: Even a driver with a great credit score whom lenders would normally bless with a low-interest mortgage could wind up with a less favorable insurance score and thus a high premium. That’s because formulations for insurance scores weigh credit data differently from traditional lender scores. Indeed, insurance scores can penalize consumers who use credit reasonably. For instance, Progressive Auto Pro’s Financial Responsibility Score will give premium-boosting black marks to a customer whose credit-bureau information says he opened three credit accounts within the previous year, including one credit card in the previous four months, and then made two or more additional loan inquiries without accepting the credit. Read Full Article...
• WCCO Wisconsin Channel 4 CBS TV, Sep 13, 2006 10:29 am US/Central Credit Could Be A Factor In Insurance Rates By WCCO Reporter, Terri Gruca.
  
  Article Summary: This story is about the plight of a senior who is penalized by credit scoring in her state because she has what is known as an "incomplete file." In other words, she is one of many individuals whose home and car are paid for, has paid her bills on time but does not use credit. She's paid her insurance premiums for years, has no history of accidents, yet she's overcharged for auto insurance simply because of her low credit score (caused by not using credit.) While this individual is in Minnesota, her plight is repeated over and over again in any state that allows credit scoring in insurance and doesn't contain restrictions on using credit scoring when a consumer has a "thin file." Read the Full Article, it comments on Oregon Measure 42...
• MSNBC.com's The Red Tape Chronicles reports: THE HIDDEN COST OF LOW CREDIT SCORES By Bob Sullivan, April 11, 2006.


Article Summary: What do credit scores and expensive auto accidents have to do with each other? It's been speculated in the past that people with low credit scores are just careless people, and that carelessness spills over into all areas of life.... As it happens, credit scores are the data most widely available on the most consumers. Nearly every adult consumer has one; and they are easy to buy and easy fit into an mathematical model. Thanks to credit scores, instead of a few pricing tiers, many insurers have 30 or 40 tiers, says J. Robert Hunter, a spokesman for the Consumer Federation of America. Of course, the obvious question is this: Are insurers using the data to more fairly distribute costs, or just as an excuse to charge some people more? ...The only way they can give discounts is if they give other people a surcharge. In fact, Birnbaum said, the 10 percent discount offer was paltry, compared to the 50 percent increase some consumers can see as a result of a poor credit score...He is among those who believe insurers are raking in higher profits because of scores, instead of distributing costs better. He cited one study showing overall costs for consumers rose when credit score pricing was introduced.... So we’re left to wonder just how much a bad credit score might be costing us. That’s particularly maddening when you consider several studies have shown as many as 50 percent of all credit reports have some error in them. And it’s terrifically unfair to people who suddenly face a life event that causes their credit score to plummet, such as the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Read the FUll Article...