Proposition 17 will appear on the June ballot in California. The proposition has been written and funded by Mercury Insurance, California's fourth largest auto insurance company. Below is a list of some of the changes Proposition 17 will bring.

• It would allow insurance companies to charge customers more if they haven't previously had car insurance.
• If there has been a lapse in coverage for more than 90 days in the past five years, insurance companies could charge higher rates or deny coverage altogether.
• Insurance companies could charge a customer more if even one payment has been missed.
• Drivers who do maintain continuous auto insurance would be eligible for a continuous coverage discount that they could keep if they changed insurance companies. (Under current California law, drivers who switch insurance companies cannot receive the continuous coverage discount.) This could increase competition between insurance companies and lead to reduced rates.

Voters should keep in mind that drivers in states that do allow surcharges like the ones Mercury has proposed, often pay much higher premiums. Higher premiums that drivers would be unable to afford, leading them to join the large number of uninsured motorists on California's roads. Mercury claims it would not and could not impose surcharges on drivers with a lapse in their coverage record.