Thanks to last winter’s record snowfall and cold, insurance companies shelled out a lot of money to resolve claims related to ice dams and frozen pipes. Now many are asking the state to approve rate increases to help offset those losses, but one watchdog group is pushing for more information.

Peter Fullerton is the spokesman for the Massachusetts Division of Insurance. In an email, he said the state received 39 homeowners insurance rate filings, 12 of which were rejected. Of the 27 that were authorized, 14 have seen no change in rates, Fullerton said.

Fullerton said the division is planning public informational hearings and listening sessions to gather input and concerns from all interested parties and will announce the dates soon. The hearings are not required by law and not typically held.

As of last Tuesday, Fullerton said his office had received seven letters from consumers requesting public hearings, which is unusual.

“It is not the division’s experience to receive requests from consumers for hearings on homeowner’s rates in the voluntary market,” Fullerton wrote.

That may be because Paula Aschettino, founder and chairman of the group Citizens for Homeowners Insurance Reform, said she asked the nearly 7,000 people on her email list to contact the state and complain about the rate hike requests, which she claims are unjustified.

“I’m not saying no rate increase,” Aschettino said. “I’m saying insurance companies have to justify the need to raise rates. Massachusetts has had extremely low loss ratios for the last 10 to 12 years. They’ve made plenty of profit. One bad year doesn’t make a trend. There’s just not enough data in the rate filings to justify the hikes they’re requesting.”

The Industry Responds

Ron DeLucia, of Ark Insurance in Stoneham, said each carrier is different, but he is seeing most carriers increasing their premiums by about 8 to 10 percent, and he understands the need.

“It was one of the worst seasons in years,” DeLucia said. “It wasn’t only the number of claims – the damage was far greater than ever before. Typically, an ice dam claim might be for a couple of thousand dollars. We saw ice dam claims in the $10,000 range and higher. We’re still getting claims.”

DeLucia said he hasn’t gotten many objections to the increases from his customers yet, but he expects some customers will leave him and go with the cheapest policy they can find.

“People don’t understand how insurance works,” DeLucia said. “Everyone is cost-conscious, but you should want your carrier to make money. You want them to have sufficient money in reserves so they can pay claims in a timely manner.”

Peter Marshall owns Marshall Insurance in Marlborough. Marshall said he and his staff processed claims for their customers all day, every day for six weeks during the end of last winter. In addition, he said he fielded questions from almost everyone he encountered for months after that. He anticipates some customers objecting to the rate increases and hopes educating them will help them understand the need to raise rates.

“We agents have no control over rates and no control over the rate-setting process. We are paid a flat commission,” Marshall said. “The insurance companies set aside reserves that they maintain continuously to cover anticipated losses. When we have a winter like we did last year, with a lot of significant damage, they have to raise rates to rebuild the reserves for future claims.”

John P. Murphy is the executive director of the Massachusetts Insurance Federation. He said his members have not reported complaints from consumers regarding the rate hike requests. Murphy said consumers are more likely to simply shop for a cheaper policy if they are unhappy with their premium.

“We’re in a vibrant, competitive market here in Massachusetts,” Murphy said. “Some companies have a larger market share than others, but there are no dominant companies. If a consumer is unhappy, they can shop the competition.”

Murphy said insurance companies raise rates periodically as a normal course of business.

“Over the past five to six years, we’ve had a lot of bad weather,” Murphy said. “Eventually those losses have to be paid for.”