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Texas Department of Insurance
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About TDI

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The Texas Department of Insurance regulates the state’s insurance industry, oversees the administration of the Texas workers’ compensation system, performs the duties of the State Fire Marshal’s Office, and provides administrative support to the Office of Injured Employee Counsel – a separate agency.

Texas Insurance Code requires TDI to:

  • Regulate the business of insurance in Texas.
  • Protect and ensure the fair treatment of consumers.
  • Ensure fair competition in the insurance industry to foster a competitive market.
  • Administer the Texas’ workers’ compensation system as provided by the Texas Labor Code.
  • Ensure that the insurance code and other laws regarding insurance and insurance companies are executed. 

The insurance commissioner is the agency’s chief executive and administrative officer. The commissioner administers and enforces state insurance laws and applicable laws that grant jurisdiction to TDI or the commissioner.

The Division of Workers’ Compensation, under the direction of the division’s appointed commissioner, oversees the administration and operation of the Texas workers’ compensation system. The division monitors compliance of all parties, taking enforcement action when necessary, to ensure that the Texas Workers’ Compensation Act, Texas Labor Code, and other regulations regarding workers’ compensation are implemented and enforced. According to Texas Labor Code, the goals of the division are to ensure that:

  • Each employee be treated with dignity and respect when injured on the job.
  • Each injured employee have access to a fair and accessible dispute resolution process.
  • Each injured employee have access to prompt, high-quality medical care.
  • Each injured employee receive services to facilitate their return to work as soon as it is considered safe and appropriate by their health care provider.

DWC does not pay benefits on workers’ compensation claims. Insurance carriers (including licensed insurance companies, governmental entities, certified self-insured employers and group self-insured employers) pay benefits.

The governor, with advice and consent of the Texas Senate, appoints both commissioners for two-year terms.


Agency mission

The Texas Department of Insurance mission is to protect insurance consumers by:

  • Regulating the insurance industry fairly and diligently
  • Promoting a stable and competitive market
  • Providing information that makes a difference.

Agency regulatory approach

The Texas Department of Insurance will exemplify friendly, courteous, ethical, and professional behavior in all areas of performance by:

  • Providing the best value in services to the people of Texas
  • Applying the law and the agency policy fairly and consistently throughout the state,
  • Communicating openly and providing timely and accurate information to the public we serve, and to all our fellow employees, and
  • Communicating internally and externally, we evaluate and adjust the course of the agency in response to changes in conditions.

Agency promise

TDI's Compact with Texans provides all the basic information you need to learn more about the many services and resources the agency offers Texans.

Agency history

The recorded history of insurance law in Texas and the predecessors of the Texas Department of Insurance date back to 1876 – the year Mark Twain published "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" and Colorado became the 38th state. The constitution of Texas adopted that year authorized the Legislature to create the office of Insurance Commissioner when it deemed it necessary. Two years earlier, the state had made its first effort to regulate the insurance business in Texas. The state's economy and population were growing, and wildcat insurance schemes were common. The 14th Legislature in 1874 passed a law regulating the life and health insurance business in the areas of company formation, activities and coverage.

TDI on the move

In 2022, the department moved from the William P. Hobby Jr. Building in downtown Austin to the Barbara Jordan State Office Building north of the Texas Capitol. Learn about the building’s namesake.

For more information, contact: MediaRelations@tdi.texas.gov

Last updated: 9/5/2024