The WESTERN ASSOCIATION OF AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE PLANS (WAAIP) is a association of eleven western state automobile insurance plans. Each state created their own "assigned risk" plan with the essential purpose to provide automobile insurance coverage to eligible risks who seek coverage and are unable to obtain such coverage in their state through the voluntary market.

The WESTERN ASSOCIATION OF AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE PLANS (WAAIP) is comprised of the following eleven state plans:

The Western Association of Automobile Insurance Plans is not an insurance company. It is an organization created by the insurance industry with the purpose of administering the assignment and distribution of assigned risk applications to the various western state automobile insurance plans. It’s offices are located in San Francisco, California. This office also manages the California Automobile Assigned Risk Plan.

Each state plan is managed by an eight member governing committee. These committees are comprised of insurance company representatives whose task is to oversee the operation of the individual state plans. The rates are recommended by each state plan’s Governing Committee and then are submitted for approval to each respective state’s Department of Insurance. The financial backing necessary to assume the risk comes from companies who are required by law to participate in the plan.

Applicants to each state plan are divided among insurance companies in proportion to the amount of automobile insurance business each company writes in the state. For example, a company which insures 10 percent of the cars in Colorado’s regular market insures 10 percent of the applicants to the Colorado Motor Vehicle Insurance Plan.

What is the Western Association of Automobile Insurance Plans? It is a processing center by which people who have trouble buying automobile insurance are put in touch with an insurance company which will insure them. From then on, the person and the producer communicate with the insurance company as if they had chosen the company. As part of the initial processing, the Plan makes financial responsibility filings with the Department of Motor Vehicles if requested on the application. If the insured or producer is having difficulty in getting the attention of the insurance company, we attempt to assist. When appropriate we will also assist insurance companies in communicating with insured and producers.

Only licensed agent/brokers can submit applications to the automobile insurance plan of their respective state.