Commerce and Insurance, Dept. of

Plain English Breakdown

The bill summary text does not provide information about the specific timing of when the department must publish details, only that it starts on October 1, 2026. The exact frequency is mentioned as 'not less than once every three months' but this was removed to match the official source material.

Insurance Transparency Act

This bill requires the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance to disclose certain information about insurance companies that violate claims-handling laws under specific conditions.

What This Bill Does

• Prohibits the department from treating information related to substantiated violations of insurance claims-handling laws as confidential if they meet specified criteria.
• Requires the department to publish on its website, starting October 1, 2026, details about final market conduct examination findings, administrative orders, settlements, aggregated data reflecting consumer complaints, and corrective action plans for insurers.
• Requires annual reports by January 15 of each year summarizing claims involving policyholders aged 65 or older, substantiated complaints alleging failure to adjust or pay such claims, and enforcement actions taken against insurers.

Who It Names or Affects

• Insurance companies in Tennessee
• The public who can access the information online

Terms To Know

Claims-handling laws

Rules that insurance companies must follow when dealing with claims from policyholders.

Substantiated violations

Proven cases where an insurance company has broken the law or rules.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill did not pass and was stopped in committee.
• It does not change how long insurers have to respond to complaints, which is still 30 business days.

Official Summary Text

ON MARCH 30, 2026, THE HOUSE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 1477, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1 rewrites the bill to, instead, prohibit
the department of commerce and insurance
from
treat
ing
information relating to substantiated violations of insurance claims-handling laws as confidential when the violations
meet any of the following criteria
:



Involve failure to timely investigate, adjust, or pay claims
.


Involve misrepresentation of policy provisions relating to coverage
.


Demonstrate a pattern or practice of unfair claims settlement practices
.


Affect policyholders who are 65 or older, residents of long-term care facilities, or otherwise classified as vulnerable adults under
present
law.

This amendment subjects information to disclosure, including:



Final market conduct examination findings related to claims handling
.


Final administrative orders, consent orders, or settlements
.


Aggregated data reflecting the number and type of substantiated consumer complaints
.


Corrective action plans required of insurers following substantiated violations
.


Administrative penalties or sanctions imposed for claims-handling misconduct.

However, this amendment
does not require disclosure
of any of the following
:



Personally identifying information of any claimant or insured
.


Medical records or protected health information
.


Trade secrets, actuarial formulas, or proprietary pricing methodologies
.


Information relating to an ongoing investigation prior to a final determination.

This amendment requires the department, on and after October 1, 2026, to publish the information described above in a
publicly accessible location and searchable format on its website. The department
must
update the information not less than once every three

months.

In addition, by January 15, 2027 and no later than January 15 of each year thereafter, the department
must
prepare and publish in a publicly accessible location on the department's website an annual report summarizing
all of the following
:



The number of claims involving policyholders 65

or older
.


The number of substantiated complaints alleging failure to adjust or pay such claims
.


The insurers against whom such complaints were substantiated
.


Enforcement actions taken as a result.

This amendment requires the
report t
o n
ot disclose personally identifying information and
i
dentify insurers by name.
However, t
his
amendment
does not
do any of the following
:



Waive attorney-client privilege
.


Require disclosure of trade secrets protected under state or federal law
.


Permit disclosure of confidential information unrelated to a substantiated claims-handling violation.

Current Bill Text

HOUSE BILL 1477
By Hakeem

SENATE BILL 1694
By Akbari
SB1694
010487
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 33;
Title 39; Title 52; Title 56; Title 58; Title 68 and
Title 71, relative to insurance.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 56-1-106(a)(2)(A), is amended by
deleting "thirty (30) days" and substituting "thirty (30) business days".
SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.