Virginia just tore up a 15-year-old rate-filing playbook for commercial liability insurers – and replaced it with one that comes with new conditions.
On May 11, 2026, the Commonwealth of Virginia's State Corporation Commission, through its Bureau of Insurance, issued Administrative Order No. 12198. The order suspends the requirement to file certain rates, prospective loss costs, and supplementary rate information used in writing commercial liability insurance in the state.
The order, signed in Richmond, withdraws Administrative Order No. 11888, which had been on the books since February 9, 2011. That earlier order had carved out the same kind of carve-out – exempting certain rates from the filing rules in Chapter 19 of Title 38.2 because they could not realistically be filed before they were used. The new order keeps the spirit of that approach and replaces the older framework with an updated one.
The legal hook is Section 38.2-1903 of the Code of Virginia, which lets the Commissioner exempt rates that cannot practicably be filed before they are used. The Commissioner found that test met for certain types and classes of liability insurance defined in Sections 38.2-117 and 38.2-118 of the Code. In plain terms, the Commissioner concluded the pre-use filing requirement is not workable for the categories the order covers – so it goes.
For carriers, the practical effect is a lighter pre-filing load on the affected commercial liability lines. Underwriters can move on rate decisions without queueing paperwork at the Bureau first. But the order builds in clear conditions, and they matter.
If an insurer chooses to file rates or supplementary rate information for the exempted classes anyway, the order treats those filings as manual rates for that insurer – the same status as if filing had been required. In other words, voluntary doesn't mean informal. Once it's filed, it counts.
The exemption can also be pulled back. It does not apply to any classification of liability insurance later found to be non-competitive and subject to the prior-filing requirements of Section 38.2-1912 of the Code of Virginia. If a line of business loses its competitive footing, the filing obligation snaps back into place for that classification.
Rates still have to behave. Any rates, prospective loss costs, or supplementary rate information used under the exemption must not be excessive, inadequate, or unfairly discriminatory. The Commission reserves the right to examine or investigate, on its own motion or on complaint, whether rates affected by the suspension cross that line. Translation: the Bureau is not stepping back from the market, just shifting from a pre-filing model to one weighted toward after-the-fact review.
An attested copy of the order is going to all rate service organizations and insurers licensed to write personal injury liability and property damage liability insurance in the Commonwealth, and to the Deputy Commissioner of Insurance of the Property and Casualty Division. Everyone touching commercial liability rates in Virginia should expect a copy in the inbox.
For underwriters, compliance teams, and rating bureaus operating in Virginia, this is the new baseline. Lighter at the front end, with the Bureau holding its powder for any rates that look excessive, inadequate, or unfairly discriminatory once they hit the market.
