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Senate · Engrossed · 2025-2026 Regular Session

SB 409: "Insurers' Use of Aerial or Satellite Images Act"; enact

Last action February 25, 2026 · House Second Readers

Senate Bill 409 would set rules for how homeowners insurers in Georgia use drone, aircraft, or satellite photos to deny, cancel, or raise rates on residential policies, and would give homeowners 60 days to fix flagged problems.

Read the full bill text

These buttons carry the bill's own text, not the summaries below. Copy for LLM, View as markdown, and Send to AI use the Markdown version: the text as filed, then the summaries under a heading that names them as ours. View raw is the text alone.

The summaries below were written by an AI model (claude-sonnet-5) from the text of the bill and are not part of it. Quote the text, not the summary. The stored text is the Engrossed version, the latest the General Assembly's website lists.

In plain language

Insurance companies increasingly use aerial and satellite photos to spot roof damage, overgrown vegetation, or other conditions when deciding whether to insure a home. This bill adds a new section to Georgia's insurance code, O.C.G.A. § 33-9-45, that limits how insurers can use those images against homeowners. If an insurer uses aerial or satellite images to deny, cancel, not renew, reduce coverage on, or raise the price of a homeowner's residential property policy, it must give the homeowner date-stamped copies of the images (taken within nine months), explain exactly what condition is out of compliance, and describe the repair standards needed to fix it. The insurer must set up a contact point and an appeals process, and must give the homeowner at least 60 days to fix the problem, even if that runs past the normal cancellation notice period. If the homeowner proves the fix was made, the insurer must offer to renew or reverse its decision. The rules also apply to Georgia's Fair Access to Insurance Requirements Plan for residential properties. The Insurance Commissioner will write rules covering how homeowners submit proof and the size requirements for the images. The law would take effect July 1, 2026, and apply to policies issued or renewed on or after October 1, 2026.

What the bill does

  • Requires insurers using aerial, drone, or satellite images to justify an adverse decision (denial, cancellation, non-renewal, coverage cut, or premium hike) to give homeowners dated photo evidence and repair standards.
  • Requires insurers to create a contact point and process for homeowners to submit proof they fixed the flagged problem.
  • Requires insurers to set up an appeals process for homeowners to dispute errors in an adverse decision.
  • Guarantees homeowners at least 60 days to fix the identified problem, even if that exceeds the standard non-renewal notice period under O.C.G.A. § 33-24-46.
  • Requires insurers to offer renewal or reverse the adverse decision once a homeowner proves the problem was corrected.
  • Directs the Insurance Commissioner to write rules on how homeowners submit proof of repairs and on minimum and maximum image sizes.

Who it affects

Homeowners whose primary residence is insured by an admitted insurer in Georgia, property insurance companies that use aerial or satellite imagery in underwriting and pricing, Georgia's Fair Access to Insurance Requirements Plan for residential properties, and the state Insurance Commissioner's office, which must write enforcement rules.

Why it matters

Homeowners who lose coverage or see rate increases based on aerial or satellite photos would gain a right to see the evidence, understand what to fix, appeal the decision, and get at least 60 days to make repairs before losing their policy, rather than facing sudden non-renewal.

Key provisions

  • Section 1 names the bill the 'Insurers' Use of Aerial or Satellite Images Act.'
  • Section 2 adds O.C.G.A. § 33-9-45, defining terms like 'adverse underwriting decision,' 'aerial images,' 'satellite images,' 'renewal,' and 'reduction in coverage.'
  • Subsection (b)(1) requires insurers to include date-stamped images (taken within nine months of the decision) and repair standards when notifying a homeowner of an adverse decision.
  • Subsection (b)(2)-(3) requires insurers to set up a contact point for proof of repairs and an appeals process for disputing errors.
  • Subsection (b)(4) sets a minimum 60-day cure period for homeowners, overriding the normal non-renewal notice timing in O.C.G.A. § 33-24-46 if needed.
  • Subsection (b)(5) requires insurers to offer renewal or reverse the decision once repairs are verified.
  • Subsection (c) extends these rules to the Fair Access to Insurance Requirements Plan for residential properties.
  • Subsection (d) directs the Commissioner to issue rules on proof submission methods and image size limits.

From the bill

“Provide the currently insured property owner a minimum of 60 days to cure the condition or conditions underlying an adverse underwriting decision from the date the insurer identifies the specific condition or conditions, even if the date to cure exceeds the nonrenewal notice period provided for in Code Section 33-24-46.”

This sets the core 60-day repair window homeowners get before losing coverage.

“Offer a renewal policy or rescission of the insurer's adverse underwriting decision to a property owner who submits proof that he or she has cured the condition or conditions identified in paragraph (1) of this subsection.”

Insurers must reverse the adverse decision once the homeowner proves the problem is fixed.

Discussed in meetings (11)

The House and Senate meetings that took this bill up, from their machine transcripts. Each account was written by Georgia Commons with AI and is not part of the record; the video is what was said.

  1. Senate Insurance and Labor Committee, February 5, 2026

    From 0:23:18 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said SB 409 responds to complaints that insurers use aerial images to refuse homeowners policy renewals without showing customers the alleged problems. The sponsor said insurers making unfavorable coverage decisions would have to provide dated images taken within nine months, explain corrective steps and follow the existing 60-day nonrenewal notice requirement. The sponsor said the bill would preserve insurers’ ability to use images while giving customers evidence and an opportunity to address problems. One member questioned privacy protections and whether customers should receive notice that imagery is being used. The sponsor said the practice already occurs, and two other members said the Fourth Amendment applies to government searches rather than private insurers. Asked about late notices, the sponsor said insurers missing the 60-day deadline would have to renew coverage for another year. Another member asked whether customers could know renewal prices before paying for repairs. The sponsor said filed rates limit insurers’ pricing discretion and prices could be provided when renewal processing is sufficiently advanced. After the chair questioned image-quality requirements, the sponsor offered an amendment allowing property owners’ images to have equal or greater resolution and quality, rather than the same. The committee approved the amendment and amended bill by hand votes; no numerical totals were stated.

  2. Senate Rules Committee, February 10, 2026

    From 0:07:04 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said SB 409 would provide transparency for homeowners when insurers use aerial images to evaluate their homes. The sponsor explained that an insurer declining to renew a policy because an aerial image shows a roof needing repair would have to send the policyholder a date-stamped copy of that image. No substantive questions or vote followed.

  3. Senate Rules Committee, February 12, 2026

    From 0:10:41 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: With the sponsor absent, another committee member presented SB 409. The member said insurers using drone or satellite images would have to give homeowners at least 60 days’ notice before a cancellation based on those images. The member also said homeowners would receive the image, its resolution, and the date and time it was taken, and would have an opportunity to challenge it. No questions or vote followed.

  4. Senate Rules Committee, February 17, 2026

    From 0:10:20 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The presenter said SB 409 would provide transparency and consumer protections for homeowners when insurers use aerial images to make home-insurance decisions. No further details, substantive questions or calendar action followed.

  5. Senate Rules Committee, February 19, 2026

    From 0:11:36 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor described SB 409 as a transparency and consumer protection measure for homeowners, noting that it had been presented previously. No substantive questions followed. Later, the chair selected it for the next day's floor calendar. The committee approved the five-bill calendar by voice vote, which the chair described as unanimous.

  6. Senate floor session, February 20, 2026 (legislative day 22)

    From 3:10:05 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the bill's status history (Senate Third Read)

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said SB 409 would protect homeowners when insurers use aerial or satellite images to make unfavorable coverage decisions. The sponsor described complaints from insurance agents who lacked enough information to help customers facing nonrenewal. The sponsor said the bill would still allow aerial imagery but require insurers to provide the policyholder and agent with the image used in the decision, dated and no more than nine months old. The sponsor said homeowners would have time to address the problem and seek reversal of the decision. Asked how long an insured person would have to respond, the sponsor said 60 days under legislation passed the previous year. No senator spoke against the measure. The Senate adopted the committee substitute without objection and passed it 49 to 0.

Status timeline

  1. 2026-02-25House Second Readers (House)
  2. 2026-02-24House First Readers (House)
  3. 2026-02-20Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate)
  4. 2026-02-20Senate Third Read (Senate)
  5. 2026-02-09Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
  6. 2026-02-06Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (Senate)
  7. 2026-01-16Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
  8. 2026-01-15Senate Hopper (Senate)

Sponsors

  • Larry Walker, III (R, SD-20)Primary sponsor
  • Marty Harbin (R, SD-16)
  • Randy Robertson (R, SD-29)
  • Kay Kirkpatrick (R, SD-32)
  • Ed Harbison (D, SD-15)
  • Russ Goodman (R, SD-8)

Votes

  1. PassedSenate voteFebruary 20, 2026

    49 yea, 0 nay (1 not voting, 4 excused)

    PASSAGE BY SUBSTITUTE: Senate Vote #566

Topics

  • homeowners insurance
  • aerial imagery
  • insurance regulation
  • property insurance cancellation
  • insurance commissioner rules

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