Waites Pushes to Ban ZIP Codes in Insurance Pricing
Georgia's commissioner-elect wants auto and homeowners insurers to stop using ZIP codes and credit scores to set rates.
Updated on Nov. 10, 2026 in Insurance
Live Poll
Should insurers be banned from using ZIP codes and credit scores to set car insurance rates?
Georgia Insurance Commissioner-elect Keisha Waites says auto and homeowners insurance rates should not be based on ZIP codes or credit scores. Her position follows an InsuranceQuotes.com analysis showing drivers in southwest Atlanta pay more than those in Sandy Springs or Alpharetta.
Why it matters
Waites argues rates should reflect how a person drives, their record, claims, and miles driven rather than socioeconomic metrics. Any permanent ban would have to pass through the Georgia General Assembly.
State filings analyzed by InsuranceQuotes.com show a clean-record driver in southwest Atlanta pays nearly $3,700 a year for full coverage. That is about $1,100 to $1,500 more than the same driver in Sandy Springs or Alpharetta, and the analysis does not say how much of the gap is attributable to ZIP code alone.
The players
Keisha Waites
Keisha Waites is Georgia's Insurance Commissioner-elect, who is pushing to eliminate ZIP codes and credit scores from auto and homeowners insurance pricing.
InsuranceQuotes.com
InsuranceQuotes.com is an online insurance comparison service that analyzed state insurance filings to compare rates across Georgia ZIP codes.
The details
Bridget Cunningham, a licensed driver for more than three decades with no infractions, accidents, or DUIs, lives in the Capitol View neighborhood in the 30310 ZIP code, which InsuranceQuotes.com ranks as having the highest auto insurance rates in metro Atlanta. Waites said in an email to CBS News Atlanta that a driver with a clean record but poor credit can pay about twice as much for full coverage as a driver with good credit.
Timeline
November 9, 2026: Article published on Georgia commissioner-elect Keisha Waites's proposed ZIP code and credit score ban.
Market Dynamics
Any permanent ban on ZIP code and credit score rating factors must pass through the Georgia General Assembly rather than being imposed by the insurance commissioner alone. The proposal sets up a legislative fight over which pricing factors insurers may use in auto and homeowners coverage.
Drivers with clean records in higher-rate ZIP codes could see lower premiums if the ban passes, but that outcome depends on legislation not yet introduced. Drivers with poor credit but clean records currently face roughly double the full-coverage cost of drivers with good credit, according to Waites.
The takeaway
Rate-setting factors like ZIP codes and credit scores are now a central policy question for Georgia drivers and homeowners. Shoppers in higher-rate areas may want to compare quotes across insurers, since current pricing varies widely by location.
Further reading
For more on how insurers set rates, see Insurance coverage on Wisevoter.
Source note: This article includes information reported by CBS News.
Live Poll
Should insurers be banned from using ZIP codes and credit scores to set car insurance rates?
