New Car Insurance Regulator

Thomas R. Sullivan has just been named as the new commissioner of the state Department of Insurance, and it is a job he feels he was meant to do. He has already spent countless hours going over the complaints of those that have insurance in the state, and has vowed to make it better for everyone. He says that by knowing what the problems are, especially the “gripes of consumers” will enable the market to work more efficiently.

Sullivan has worked in the insurance industry for the last 22 years, so it is a job he already has a more than basic knowledge of. His role will be to implement changes that are made into laws, and keep abreast of the issues that concern residents.

Sullivan has already met with the Auto Body Association of Connecticut, who has maintained for years that the insurance department of the state has looked the other way while the auto insurance companies only use certain shops. They say that the auto insurance companies give their business to those shops that they have arrangements with, which is illegal. Attorney General Richard Blumenthal sides with the repair shops.

Blumenthal has been openly critical of Sullivan, and wants him to take action against the auto insurance companies. Sullivan met with the group’s leaders and gave them laminated signs that they can hang in their repair shops that state that consumers can have their cars repaired anywhere they want, no matter what the auto insurance companies say. However, he says that there is nothing illegal about the direct repair deals that the auto insurance companies have made, but consumers should be aware of their repair rights.

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