ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - Georgians are paying some of the highest insurance costs in the country, and state lawmakers are digging into what’s driving the spike.

A special study committee is examining how rates are set, how claims are processed and whether insurance companies’ profit margins are coming at the expense of consumers.

At a packed hearing Thursday, Insurance Commissioner John King pointed to fraud as a major factor.

“The consumer is caught in the middle. They get crushed. You have people renting a car and backing into their own vehicle to max out two claims,” King said.

King said Georgia has the second-highest rate of insurance fraud in the country, most of it in auto insurance. He added that district attorneys rarely prosecute such cases. His office receives abou

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