News: 2008 Press Release

SACRAMENTO - Consumer Federation of America rated the Department of Insurance Web site as "excellent" for providing consumers information about auto and homeowners insurance, according to a survey released this week.

"Consumers need information so they can make an informed choice on insurance and I'm proud that California is at the forefront of using the Web to provide that information," said Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner. "As we implement our paperless initiative, in addition to the obvious environmental benefits, we will also be able to put even more data online so people can see for themselves information that's only available in our reading rooms."

California was one of only six states out of the 50 states and the District of Columbia that received an excellent rating.

The Department of Insurance has won a number of awards for its technical achievements. Recently, the National Association of Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) awarded the California Department of Insurance third place in the 2008 Recognition Awards for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Information Technology in State Government. The award was for the Department's Telecommunications Infrastructure Replacement Project. The project was completed in 2008 and involved the replacement of a nearly 20-year old system with state-of-the-art Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) infrastructure. Included in the replacement was the successful installation of 1500 handsets, 150 softphones, and several call center applications. This transition has enabled the Department to better serve California consumers, in addition to saving $80,000 per year in long distance charges and communication lines.

For more information on the study, please visit http://www.namic.org/pdf/01PolPaperAppelCFA.pdf.