North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Goodwin to Seek Re-Election

North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin plans to seek re-election in 2016, he announced this week.

“I remain committed to protecting the people of North Carolina through fair and reasonable insurance regulation, while also promoting a vibrant and competitive business community,” said Goodwin. “My experience as Insurance Commissioner has shown me even more how much insurance issues affect people. I want to continue standing up for all North Carolinians.”

Goodwin, a Democrat, was first elected to the office of Insurance Commissioner in 2008 and was re-elected in 2012 by a larger percentage.

His accomplishments as Commissioner, according to Goodwin’s reelection announcement, include:

• North Carolina has the lowest car insurance costs in the country. A 2015 study shows drivers pay 41 percent less than the national average. Additionally, he has recently persuaded the legislature to provide greater flexibility with a bypass of the N.C. Rate Bureau to give consumers more choices and insurance companies greater ability to provide new products and services.
• North Carolina’s crackdown on insurance fraud. Since Goodwin took office in 2009, his team of criminal investigators has made more than 1,500 arrests for insurance-related crimes, delivering more than $60 million in recoveries and restitution for victims of fraud.
• North Carolina’s growing captive insurance industry. In the last two years, more than 150 new businesses have come into the state.

Goodwin—a native of Hamlet, N.C.—represented Richmond, Scotland, Montgomery and Stanly counties during four terms in the North Carolina House of Representatives and was appointed Assistant Insurance Commissioner and Assistant State Fire Marshal prior to being elected Insurance Commissioner. Goodwin serves on the NAIC Executive Committee, is in his third term as Vice Chairman of the NAIC Southeast Zone, Vice Chairman of the NAIC Market Regulation and Consumer Affairs Committee, and Chairman of the national Anti-Fraud Task Force.

Topics North Carolina