The insurance industry won a round in its battle with the state of Florida over the industry's controversial practice of using consumer credit scores to determine what people are charged for homeowners or automobile insurance and who gets a policy.

An administrative law judge in Tallahassee has temporarily ordered state insurance regulators to stop relying on a rule that requires insurers to prove that they don't discriminate against certain customers because of their credit scores.

Most insurance companies rely on credit scores -- which are a measure of how well consumers handle debt -- to assess risk when issuing or renewing a policy. Consumer groups including the Consumer Federation of America and the Florida Consumer Action Network have decried the practice and questioned whether credit scores can be used fairly.

The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation's general counsel has said that people with the worst credit scores are being forced to pay the most for insurance.

Allstate settled such a suit earlier this year without admitting fault. And Progressive Insurance settled its own suit, without admitting fault, over allegations that it hadn't notified 10 million customers it was collecting personal information from credit reports and other sources.

To implement that law, the state Office of Insurance Regulation in May notified insurers that starting this month if they are seeking a rate increase, they had to prove that their use of credit scores does not discriminate against anyone based on race, religion, marital status, age, gender, income, national origin or place of residence.

"We don't collect that information and don't want to," said Sam Miller, executive vice president of the Florida Insurance Council. The council and three other industry groups challenged the state in court.

Miller said insurers are complying with the 2003 state law on credit scores, but regulators overstepped their authority when they issued the rule in May.

In the court hearing last month, insurers argued that the rule would essentially force them to abandon the use of credit scores and that would have a substantial impact on how they do business in Florida.

The administrative law court issued a preliminary final order this week. The court still has to issue a final ruling on the industry's challenge.

A spokesman for the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation said Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty is reviewing the court's decision before deciding how to proceed. The ruling can be appealed.

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