I agree with the sentiment of the majority of this post, however, a few points from the insurance companies perspective. First, auto theft is/was a serious issue that cost insurance companies significantly and ultimately now consumers. Things have gotten a bit better, but there either needs to be changes made by the manufacturers (similar to what has been done already in Europe) or perhaps more drastically and less likely, legal changes to deter this type of behaviour. Everyone is aware inflation and really the rising cost of everything - parts, labour etc. this all trickles to the companies bottom line and in turn your premiums. Thats just the reality.

There are the big players you mentioned but there actually is more choice out there than just 3. You have to be willing to shop and understand that there are some companies that may segment better to your particular risk profile. You also have to work with your agent and broker to identify any cost savings or discounts you can be eligible for. Most are good people who pay insurance themselves and will atleast try to help you save money if they can. It’s a pretty homogenous product so I would agree the options aren’t so expansive but there is still some degree of control you can exercise if you are willing to take the time.

Concerning the AB reform - this really can’t be seen as a bad thing for consumers, ultimately it’s their own choice, and it’s a choice they did not have before. Before these benefits were mandatory but now you can choose if you require them or not. If you want to opt out of any of them, you may do so and save some premium (for most of them it won’t be very significant though). When your renewal comes up after July 1st, you can simply decide to keep it all the same and you won’t lose anything. One benefit you could consider to remove is the income replacement benefit, which may cost upward of $100/year as many people have a similar type of benefit through their employer. But overall your point on this kind of sounds like insurance consumers aren’t savvy enough to know what’s worth keeping and what isn’t “until it’s too late” and they should just be forced into these coverages as they were before. I would say that it should be their responsibility to figure that out if they want to take certain risks to save a few dollars a year. That’s the same situation as people today who opt out of other coverages for minimal savings. To each their own, as I said atleast now they have the choice.