PEORIA - As a part of his Driving Change campaign, Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias hosted a sixth virtual Town Hall for Peoria residents Wednesday evening to discuss the skyrocketing cost of auto insurance. Between the first six virtual Town Halls, over 850 Illinoisans have participated to learn more about the issue and share their stories.
Residents shared their first-hand accounts of auto insurance rates increasing due to a recent move, a poor credit score or advanced age – reasons that have nothing to do with their driving record. This was the sixth of a series of virtual Town Hall meetings that the Secretary of State’s office is conducting over the next several weeks to gather feedback from Illinoisans to help inform state legislation for members of the General Assembly to consider.
“We’re over halfway through our Driving Change virtual town hall visits, and the resounding message from hundreds of Illinois families could not be clearer: Illinoisans deserve more transparency. The auto insurance ratemaking system is broken, and hardworking families are paying the price. It’s time to fix it,” Giannoulias said. “To ensure fairness and affordability, an individual’s insurance rates must be based on driving record and not where they live, how much debt they're in or their age. That’s why we’re building a movement to help pass real reforms that will be fair for everyone and save money.”
“My son and my brother are opposed to being in debt, so for over 15 years they’ve paid for everything in cash or check, they don’t have credit cards, their homes are paid off, their cars are paid off, which I thought was commendable. Several years ago, when insurance companies started using credit scores to determine insurance rates, both of their policies doubled. If you don’t play the credit card game, your credit score is zero.” said JoEllen.
“My mom, 85 years old, drives very few miles a year, great record. She was told because she moved into a particular ZIP code that her rate was going to go up. What frustrated us both is she called the insurance company, argued it and they were like ‘oh yeah, your price is going down.’ They changed it when she argued it. She shouldn’t have had to do that,” said Renee.
The virtual Town Hall meetings are part of the recently launched “Driving Change” advocacy campaign – aimed at preventing insurance companies from using socio-economic data, such as credit scores, ZIP codes and age, to unfairly charge Illinoisans higher auto insurance rates. As a result, drivers from disadvantaged neighborhoods and communities of color disproportionately suffer.
In addition, Giannoulias has launched a website – www.ilsos.gov/drivingchange – enabling Illinoisans to learn more about the issue and easily share their stories about unfair and discriminatory ratemaking practices currently used by insurance companies. The site also allows residents to email their state representative and senator and urge them to support reforming the current system.
The Secretary of State’s office will host additional virtual Town Hall meetings across the state, including:
Illinois-focused studies have revealed ratemaking inequities and disparities, including insurers on average increasing rates on senior drivers and charging consumers with a safe driving record and poor credit hundreds of dollars more than someone with a DUI conviction and excellent credit.
The launch of the campaign comes as insurance rates for both homes and automobiles are skyrocketing. According to Insurify, Illinois auto insurance rates increased 18% in 2024 and are projected to increase another 4% in 2025, bringing the projected annual cost of full coverage to $2,050. Meanwhile, new tariffs are expected to cause auto parts to climb and result in insurance rates soaring even higher.
Along with factors like credit reports, ZIP code and age, insurance companies are using third-party site data from sources like social media and common cell phone apps, which can be used in a discriminatory way to unfairly determine rates.
Like most states, Illinois requires every vehicle owner to buy insurance, but it is one of only two states – along with Wyoming – that doesn’t require prior rate review to protect insurance customers from excessive or unfair rates.
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