A recent report from MarketWatch, a subsidiary of Dow Jones, reveals that car insurance costs in Georgia surged by 22% in 2023. Other reports have found that a high number of “frivolous” lawsuits has contributed to the state’s rising costs.
The report states that Georgia's 22% increase for full coverage car insurance surpassed the increase observed in 30 other states between 2022 and 2023. In 2022, Georgian drivers paid an average of $1,617 for their car insurance. However, by 2023, this figure had leapt to $1,973. Several factors are said to contribute to Georgia's higher-than-average surge in car insurance costs. These include a growing number of accidents and car thefts and rising prices for vehicle parts.
According to the Independent Insurance Agents of Georgia (IIAG), another contributing factor to the climbing car insurance costs is the actions of trial attorneys. The IIAG maintains that each resident of Georgia pays a "tort tax" exceeding $1,000 annually. Meanwhile, trial attorneys reportedly spent $4.7 million influencing lawmakers during the last election cycle. Furthermore, between 2017 and 2021, trial attorneys in Georgia are said to have expended nearly $400 million on legal advertisements. The IIAG suggests that if the state implemented tort reform measures to tackle "lawsuit abuse," Georgia's gross product could see an increase by almost $12 billion.
MarketWatch was established in 1997 by Bill Bishop, Derek Reisfield, James Kaplan, and Larry Kramer. Headquartered in San Francisco, it offers investment tools and data, financial information, and business news, according to CrunchBase.