Insurance Commissioner Goodwin Criss-Crosses North Carolina

Though Not on Ballot in 2010, Statewide Elected Official Barnstorms All Over

Wayne Goodwin says he doesn't just meet consumers and voters during his election year, but each and every day.

To that end, he has picked up the pace of criss-crossing North Carolina from east to west, back and forth over the last several months.

Sometimes he's speaking to a group of 15 members of a civic club.

Another day he's bringing down the house in front of 1,000 senior citizens or small business owners at a conference.

Then there are the political events where he gets hundreds of people to respond back and engage with him as if they were in church.

And all in-between Goodwin informs, implores, cajoles, and makes his audiences laugh while proving each time that what makes him tick is good government, common sense leadership, consumer protection, transparency, doing what's right, and 21st century populism.

In the months of September and October alone, some of the Tar Heel places Insurance Commissioner Goodwin will have visited are:

*Carteret County Underwriters, Morehead City
*IIANC of Charlotte/Mecklenburg
*Roanoke Rapids Valley Chamber of Commerce
*Southeast Raleigh
*Anson County Democratic Party, Wadesboro
*Piedmont Triad 2010 Aging Conference, Greensboro
*Pharmacy Leaders' Forum, Greensboro
*Ashe Co. Democratic Party, West Jefferson
*Ashe County Homebuilders Association, Jefferson
*Gibson Fire Dept, Scotland County
*Employee Benefits Brokers Seminar, Charlotte
*NC Retail Pharmacists Annual Mtg, Raleigh
*Statewide Fire Drill/Fire Prevention Month, Cleveland Co. Fair, Shelby
*Tri-Community Fire Dept., New Bern
*Independent Insurance Agents of NC (IIANC) Annual Convention, Asheville
*Western NC Fire Training Center, Woodfin
*NC Assn of Health Underwriters - WNC (NCAHU), Asheville
*Governor's Aging Conference, Research Triangle Park
*NC State Fair (multiple times)
*Morrison-Deane-Goodman Annual Dinner, Hamlet
*East Carolina University (ECU), Greenville

Even more appearances and opportunities for citizens to meet him are slated in the coming months for coastal and eastern Carolina, as well as throughout the state.

And then there is all the activity he does actually in his office: ordering hundreds of millions of dollars in insurance refunds and rate reductions, fighting insurance fraud, protecting consumers, penalizing insurance companies for violations of the law, being a watchdog for insurance company solvency, approving and delivering grant funds to fire departments, keeping North Carolina ahead of the curve in many ways, and generally keeping a close eye on the work of his administration.

Suffice it to say, this state insurance commissioner - heralded as the best insurance commissioner in the country in Hamlet last night by Lt. Governor Walter Dalton and one of the best state insurance regulators in the nation by the President of the United States last month - is one of the hardest working, most accessible, highest octane state officials you'll ever find.

Meet Insurance Commissioner Goodwin at Upcoming Fundraisers in Raleigh, Asheville, Greensboro

You are cordially invited to the

2nd ANNUAL FALL FUNDRAISER for

NC INSURANCE COMMISSIONER WAYNE GOODWIN

Monday, Sept. 27, 2010
5:30-7:30 pm

Marriott Center City – Downtown Raleigh
Next to Convention Center

Sponsor Levels: $1000 - $500 - $250

General Admission: $100/person

If you're unable to attend, then please consider an online donation of $50 or $25 instead to help Wayne reach his campaign's fundraising goal for the year.

Make your individual personal check or PAC check out to:

The Goodwin Committee
P.O. Box 27841
Raleigh, NC 27611

Or, you may present it at the reception registration table. No corporate, lobbyist, insurance company/insurance industry, or business checks.

Or, you may contribute securely online by clicking here.

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If you cannot attend in Raleigh, you are cordially invited to the

Western North Carolina Salute to

NC INSURANCE COMMISSIONER WAYNE GOODWIN

Monday, Oct. 11, 2010
5:30-7:30 pm

Renaissance Hotel – Downtown Asheville - 31 Woodfin Street

Sponsor Levels: $1000 - $500 - $250

General Admission: $100/person

If you're unable to attend, then please consider an online donation of $50 or $25 instead to help Wayne reach his campaign's fundraising goal for the year.

Make your individual personal check or PAC check out to “The Goodwin Committee”.

Please either return your check by mailing it to
P.O. Box 27841, Raleigh NC 27611 or presenting it at the reception registration table. No corporate, lobbyist, insurance company/insurance industry, or business checks.

Or, you may contribute securely online by clicking here.

For more information, go to www.waynegoodwin.org or call (910)997-1301.

Take either opportunity to meet our State's Commissioner of Insurance.And, please spread the word among fellow professionals, friends, and supporters.

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Less than three weeks earlier, supporters of Insurance Commissioner Goodwin will host a Triad Area Fundraiser Reception in Greensboro on September 23rd. For details, please go to this link here.

* * * * *

Paid for and authorized by The Goodwin Committee. Not paid for by government funds or resources. This campaign committee shall NOT intentionally solicit and shall NOT accept contributions from NC lobbyists or insurance industry PACs. If any such person or entity receives notice of this event then it is for information only or is to be completely disregarded.

Insurance Commissioner Goodwin: NC Has the Lowest Auto Rates in the South

"We're the Largest State in the Whole Country with the Lowest Insurance Rates," He Says

Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin today announced that North Carolina drivers pay an average of $591.11 each year for auto insurance, the 8th lowest in the country and the lowest in the South according to a report from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).

"I'm pleased that North Carolina remains one of the most affordable states in the country for auto insurance and definitely the best value in the southeast," said Commissioner Goodwin. "This ranking comes just a few months after I signed a settlement that rolls back auto insurance rates to 2006 levels, freezes them until at least 2011, and gives approximately $50 million back to many North Carolina drivers in the form of refund checks."

It's important to note that North Carolina is the most populous state among the 10 states with the lowest auto rates. The top 10 states with the lowest auto insurance rates are:

1. North Dakota
2. Iowa
3. South Dakota
4. Nebraska
5. Idaho
6. Kansas
7. Wisconsin
8. North Carolina
9. Maine
10.Indiana

Contributing to North Carolina's low auto insurance rates is the state's unique ratemaking process; North Carolina is one of the only states to negotiate standardized, across-the-board rates for all companies, depending on territory. The rate set by the Insurance Commissioner is the cap, and companies writing traditional policies can only deviate from this rate by offering discounts. As a result, most drivers enjoy some sort of discount.

Commissioner Goodwin added, "this good news for North Carolina families and businesses is especially welcome in these challenging economic times."

The NAIC report compares the costs of personal automobile insurance in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, based on 2007 data. North Carolina's neighboring states rank as follows: Tennessee:14th; Virginia: 17th; South Carolina: 30th; Georgia: 31st.

"There should be no question about it: Considering this news and my announcements about recovering $20 Million for consumers in 2009 and saving NC drivers $545 Million over the next two years, North Carolina's Commissioner of Insurance and its Department of Insurance fight strongly everyday to protect consumers with fair ratemaking," added Goodwin.

NC Fire and Life Safety Educators Save Lives, Declares Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin

Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin delivered the early morning kick-off speech for the annual meeting of the North Carolina Fire and Life Safety Educators Association on Monday.

Appearing at the historic Grove Park Inn in Asheville, he heralded the successes in the past year by both the members of the association and his employees in the Office of State Fire Marshal.

Among his many points and facts were these two:

These professionals provided more than 15,000 hours of safety education in 2009 alone.

They installed 6,200 child car safety seats.

As for the Department of Insurance and its Office of State Fire Marshal division, Commissioner Goodwin reminded the packed crowd about the recent pyrotechnics legislation, the ban on toy (or novelty) cigarette lighters, and regulation of fire-safe cigarettes...

The association alternates its annual meetings between eastern, western and central North Carolina.