Commissioner Lara appoints members to statewide boards driving forward consumer protection mission

News: 2023 Press Release

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara today announced several appointments to help drive forward the California Department of Insurance’s mission to protect consumers. These appointments include naming Carolyn Wysinger as the newest member to the California Automobile Assigned Risk Plan (CAARP) Advisory Committee and April Savoy, Patrick Wong, and Peter Guastamachio as members on the California Insurance Guarantee Association (CIGA) Board of Governors.

“I am very pleased to announce these appointments to the CAARP Advisory Committee and the CIGA Governing Board,” said Commissioner Lara. “As we begin 2023, and look ahead to furthering our goals of protecting consumers, I have every confidence that these new members will act in the best interest of all Californians.”

The Governor and California State Legislature created CAARP to provide auto insurance for motorists unable to obtain coverage in the private market due to their driving records or other extraordinary circumstances. One program within the plan -- the California Low Cost Auto Program -- aims to provide affordable liability insurance to income-eligible good drivers by assigning them to private insurers based upon the companies’ share of the auto insurance market. The CAARP Advisory Committee provides policy advice to Commissioner Lara on matters affecting the operation of its programs.

The CIGA Board of Governors oversees the guarantee association’s general operations and management in order to protect policyholders in the event of an insurance company insolvency. Established in 1969 by the Governor and California State Legislature, CIGA comprises all insurance companies admitted to sell homeowners, workers’ compensation, automobile, and other specified property and casualty lines of insurance in California.

Public members of the CAARP Advisory Committee receive $250 per meeting. All other positions are uncompensated.

The next CAARP Advisory Committee meetings will be held on Tuesday, February 7, 2023 and Wednesday, February 8, 2023. The next CIGA Board of Governors meeting will be held on Wednesday, February 8, 2023. More details are available at www.insurance.ca.gov/boards.

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Media Notes:

Appointed members include:

CAARP Advisory Committee:
 

Carolyn Wysinger is a City Councilmember for the City of El Cerrito since December 2022. Wysinger was previously an Education Coordinator at The Commonwealth Club of California and also served three terms as Board President for San Francisco Pride. Prior to that, Wysinger was a teacher at Richmond High School. In 2013, she was appointed to the Human Rights and Relations Commission of the City of Richmond. In 2020, she was appointed by Mayor London Breed and Treasurer Jose Cisneros to the Economic Recovery Task Force of the City and County of San Francisco. Currently, she serves alongside the family of George Floyd on the Board of Directors for the Philonise and Keeta Floyd Institute for Social Change. Wysinger has been appointed to the CAARP Advisory Committee in the public member representative seat, with a term ending on January 19, 2024.
 

CIGA Board of Governors:
 

April Savoy is Senior Vice President and Deputy General Counsel at Allstate Insurance Company, where she serves as secretary for the Allstate Health, Benefits, and Financial Services subsidiary boards and is a working group member of the Environmental, Social and Governance Steering Committee. She leads the Insurance Law and Legal Operations Division for the Allstate Enterprise and has over 25 years of experience in enterprise risk, legal, regulatory compliance, claims coverage, and corporate governance. Some of her previous board service experience includes serving on the Executive and Finance Committees, and Board Secretary of the Siloam Family Health Center, and membership on the Resource Development Committee of United Way of Central Ohio. Savoy has been appointed to the CIGA Board of Governors in the member insurer representative seat, with a term ending on December 31, 2025.
 

Patrick Wong is Senior Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary for CSE Insurance Group. Wong has over 20 years of experience in insurance and is a member of CSE’s Executive Leadership Team leading the Corporate Department, which includes Legal, Governance, Compliance, Quality Assurance, and Internal Audit. He serves as the representative for CSE on the Pacific Association of Domestic Insurance Companies Board of Directors and is a past member of the In-House Counsel Committee of the Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Bay Area. Wong has been reappointed to the CIGA Board of Governors as the representative of CSE Insurance Group in a member insurer seat with a term ending on December 31, 2025.

Peter Guastamachio is Chief Investment Officer and Treasurer for the State Compensation Insurance Fund (SCIF), overseeing a multi-billion-dollar investment portfolio. Guastamachio has 40 years of experience in finance, including over 20 years of experience in the insurance industry in both publicly traded insurance companies as well as a public state fund. Guastamachio is a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) and holds the Governance and Leadership Fellow certifications from the NACD. Guastamachio has been reappointed to the CIGA Board of Governors as the representative of SCIF in a member insurer seat with a term ending on December 31, 2025.