Date: 01/25/2006

Final
BILL SUMMARY for HB06-1006

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS AFFAIRS AND LABOR

Votes: View--> Action Taken:
Moved amendment L.001 (Attachment A). There was s
Refer House Bill 06-1006, as amended, to the Commi		Pass Without Objection
PASS



11:47 AM -- House Bill 06-1006

Representative Butcher, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 1006. She explained that the bill would not allow an insurance carrier to tell a consumer to use a certain company to get his/her property repaired. However, Representative Butcher stated that the bill does not prohibit the insurance company from giving the consumer a list of recommended companies to use. She stated that the bill gives the consumer the right to select the contractor he/she would like to use to fix his/her property.

11:51 AM -- Joe Arrigo, representing Arrigo Restoration, testified in support of the bill. He explained that insurance companies sometimes steer consumers to use certain companies for personal property repair. He stated that he believed the bill needs to pass for two reasons: the bill's impact on consumers, and the bill's impact on small businesses. Mr. Arrigo responded to a question from the committee about how the money changes hands between the insurance company, the consumer, and the contractor.

12:05 PM -- Larry Trujillo, representing Trujillo Steam Clean in Pueblo Colorado and the Professional Carpet and Upholstery Cleaners Association, testified on how the bill will effect his business and the association. He explained that the contractors, who have put in a considerable amount of time learning the science of their profession, are now being told by certain adjusters how to do their job and how much they should charge the consumer. Mr. Trujillo stated that another problem contractors run into is that they are being called off jobs after they have already responded to a call from a consumer because the consumers insurance company has told them to use someone else. He stated that those problems have caused his company to lose money and have forced him to lay off employees.

12:09 PM -- Donna Miller from Grand Junction, sole proprietor and owner of Clean as a Whistle Carpet Care West, testified in support of the bill. She explained that her company is greatly effected by the insurance companies making consumers only use certain companies. She stated that her company has the same problem that Mr. Trujillo stated earlier: her company prepares to go to the house, but then gets called back because the insurance company told the consumer that they may not pay her company to do the work and that the consumer should use another company of the insurance company's choosing.

12:13 PM -- Gary Gilman from Vail, representing Steam Master Carpet Cleaning and Restoration, testified in support of the bill. He stated that it mirrors the law that is already is in place related to auto repairs, and that homeowners should have the same right to select the contractor they like and maybe have even used before, rather than being steered to a contractor by the insurance company.

12:16 PM -- Chuck Miller, owner of Miller Specialties, a carpet cleaning and water damage restoration company in Delta Colorado, spoke in support of the bill and discussed the issues that exist when a business is not listed as a preferred carrier with an insurance company.

12:19 PM -- Robert Johnson expressed his personal account of the struggle he and 18 other families went through with their insurance company when they were displaced due to a fire in their building.

12:22 PM -- Lee Spampinato, representing the Insurance Contractors and Associates Inc., testified in support of the bill. He stated he feels the insurance companies are involved in contractual relationships that they should not be involved in, they manipulate the market place, and limit free competition. Mr. Spampinato responded to questions from the committee about why the market does not fix these problems on its own and why consumers cannot just pick another insurance company they are happy with.

12:29 PM -- Justin Blackburn, representing Disaster Restoration Inc., testified in support of the bill. He explained that there are certain laws that contractors are supposed to follow after disasters, such as asbestos testing after a fire, that cost money that insurance companies do not want to pay. He stated that there have been occasions where the insurance company has told him that they will not pay for the asbestos testing and that they will find a contractor who will do the work without the asbestos test. Mr. Blackburn responded to the committee's previous question about why the market does not fix the problem itself. There was some discussion on absolute pricing.

12:39 PM -- KC Savage, representing KC Savage Interior Design, testified as a consumer and as a business owner in favor of the bill. She gave her personal experience of restoring her home after a lightning strike and how she found a contractor that did exactly what she wanted. She expressed concern when consumers are forced to go to preferred vendors from the insurance company with unsatisfactory results.
BILL:HB06-1006
TIME: 12:45:41 PM
MOVED:Butcher
MOTION:Moved amendment L.001 (Attachment A). There was some discussion about whether the language in the amendment that removes the three day rule for notice to a claimant that they may freely choose any repair business should be relocated to another part of the bill. The amendment was adopted without objection.
SECONDED:Marshall
VOTE
Balmer
Borodkin
Butcher
Carroll M.
Coleman
Knoedler
Liston
McCluskey
Paccione
Penry
Welker
Cerbo
Marshall
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection
BILL:HB06-1006
TIME: 12:54:12 PM
MOVED:Butcher
MOTION:Refer House Bill 06-1006, as amended, to the Committee on Appropriations. Motion passed 13-0.
SECONDED:Coleman
VOTE
Balmer
Yes
Borodkin
Yes
Butcher
Yes
Carroll M.
Yes
Coleman
Yes
Knoedler
Yes
Liston
Yes
McCluskey
Yes
Paccione
Yes
Penry
Yes
Welker
Yes
Cerbo
Yes
Marshall
Yes
Final YES: 13 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS