HB 1420: Insurance; original equipment manufacturer repair procedures for repairs under motor vehicle liability insurance policies; provide

Right now, insurers handling motor vehicle liability claims in Georgia can approve or deny specific repair methods without being required to follow the vehicle manufacturer's own repair specifications. This bill would change that by adding a new section to Georgia's motor vehicle accident reparations law (O.C.G.A. § 33-34-10). Under the bill, all motor vehicle liability insurance policies would have to provide for repairs made according to the applicable original equipment manufacturer repair procedures, meaning the written or published repair standards issued by the car's maker. Insurers could not require claimants to skip or ignore those procedures. If an insurer wants to deny paying for a manufacturer-recommended repair method, it would have three business days to send the claimant a written, itemized explanation and a notice that the denial could count as an unfair claims settlement practice. The bill also adds this new requirement to the list of unfair claims settlement practices under O.C.G.A. § 33-6-34, and directs the Insurance Commissioner to write implementing rules.

• Requires all Georgia motor vehicle liability insurance policies to provide for repairs to be made according to the vehicle manufacturer's official repair procedures.
• Bars insurers from requiring claimants to deviate from, deny, omit, or disregard those manufacturer repair procedures.
• Requires insurers to approve a documented manufacturer repair procedure once it appears in a written estimate or request from a repair facility or claimant.
• Gives insurers only three business days to deny a documented repair procedure, and requires a written itemized explanation plus a notice about unfair claims settlement practices.
• Adds failure to follow these manufacturer repair procedure rules to the list of unfair claims settlement practices under O.C.G.A. § 33-6-34.
• Directs the Insurance Commissioner to create rules and regulations to carry out the new law.

Drivers and other claimants filing motor vehicle liability insurance claims in Georgia, auto insurers that issue or renew those policies, and repair facilities such as body shops, garages, and dealers that submit repair estimates and requests to insurers.

If enacted, insurers would no longer be able to unilaterally reject manufacturer-recommended repair methods without a fast, written justification. This could change how quickly and thoroughly vehicles are repaired after crashes, and gives claimants and repair shops a clearer path to challenge denied repairs.

• Section 1 amends the unfair claims settlement practices list in O.C.G.A. § 33-6-34, adding failure to follow original equipment manufacturer repair procedures as a new unfair practice (new paragraph 17).
• Section 2 creates new Code Section 33-34-10, defining terms including 'claimant,' 'motor vehicle liability insurance,' 'original equipment manufacturer repair procedure,' and 'repair facility.'
• Subsection (b) requires all motor vehicle liability policies to provide for repairs made according to applicable manufacturer repair procedures.
• Subsection (c) prohibits insurers from requiring claimants to deviate from, deny, omit, or disregard those procedures.
• Subsection (d) requires insurers to approve documented manufacturer repair procedures and, if denying reimbursement, to respond within three business days with a written itemized explanation and a notice about possible unfair claims settlement violations.
• Subsection (e) states that a pattern of violations constituting a general business practice violates the state's Unfair Claims Settlement Practices Act.
• Subsection (f) directs the Insurance Commissioner to promulgate rules and regulations to implement the new Code section.
• Section 3 repeals conflicting laws.

1. 2026-02-25House Second Readers (House)
2. 2026-02-24House First Readers (House)
3. 2026-02-20House Hopper (House)

• Lehman Franklin (R, HD-160)Primary sponsor
• Ron Stephens (R, HD-164)
• Jason Ridley (R, HD-006)
• Joseph Gullett (R, HD-019)
• Matthew Gambill (R, HD-015)
• Matt Barton (R, HD-005)

• auto insurance
• car repairs
• insurance regulation
• consumer protection
• claims settlement