Glossary

Use and file

A rate-regulation system in which an insurer may put new rates into effect first and then submit them to the regulator within a set period afterward.

Also called: use-and-file, use and file rate regulation, use & file

Use and file gives the insurer the most freedom of the three common rate systems. The company begins charging new rates, then files them with the state regulator within a stated number of days. The regulator reviews after the fact and can disapprove the rates, order changes or require a refund, depending on state law.

Say an insurer starts charging a new rate on March 1, and the state requires the filing within 30 days. The department may not see the filing until late March, and its review may run into the summer. Policyholders renewing in April pay the new rate while that review is open. Compare prior approval, where nothing changes until the department approves, and file and use, where the filing comes first or at the same time.

For a homeowner, the system affects how much comfort a filing gives you. Under use and file, a rate in your notice has not necessarily been reviewed. It still must comply with the state's standards: not excessive, not inadequate and not unfairly discriminatory. States use these labels differently and change them, so ask your department of insurance how homeowners rates are regulated in your state. Public records of the rate filing are the best way to see the factors behind your increase, and the how insurers file rate increases with regulators guide shows how to read one.

Last reviewed October 10, 2026

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Related terms

Prior approval A rate-regulation system in which an insurer must have the state regulator approve its proposed rates before it may charge them to policyholders. File and use A rate-regulation system in which an insurer files new rates with the regulator and may start charging them right away or after a short waiting period. Rate filing The package of proposed prices, rating factors and supporting data that an insurer submits to a state regulator before or when it changes its homeowners rates. Rate increase A rise in the price an insurer charges per unit of coverage, which is only one of several reasons the premium on your renewal notice can go up. Department of insurance The state agency that licenses and supervises insurers and agents, reviews policy forms and rates, and takes consumer insurance complaints. Insurance commissioner The state official who heads the insurance regulator, oversees insurers and agents, reviews rates and forms, and handles consumer complaints.

Related guides

Prior approval vs file-and-use rate laws Prior-approval states make insurers wait for sign-off before changing homeowners rates; file-and-use states do not. How each works and the trade-offs. How insurers file rate increases with regulators A rate filing is an insurer's request to change its prices. What goes into one, how regulators review it, how to read an average increase and where to find it.

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Oklahoma Oklahoma home insurance: State Farm writes nearly a third of the market, hail drives some of the nation's highest premiums, and there is no FAIR plan.