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We have Edison. Despite living in Charlotte County, ground zero of Ian it only went up $330 a year. They still value our rebuild amount a bit low though I think. I'm not worried about a total rebuild. Even surge if i got it would only be a foot or so in my house most likely since I'm 9ft above sea level and a couple miles from the harbour.
Ten of thousands of Citizens policyholders may no longer be eligible for coverage if a private company offers to take over their policies. It's what Citizens calls "depopulation."
Here's how the depopulation process works: Citizens will let you know that a private company wants to take over your policy. If that private company's premium is within 20% of your Citizens premium, you would no longer be eligible for Citizens. You don't necessarily have to go with that private company, but you'd no longer be able to get coverage through Citizens.
For example, if the premium for your Citizens policy is $3,000 and you get an offer from a private company for $3,600 or less, you wouldn't be able to keep your Citizens policy. That means some Citizens policyholders could end up spending more, or less, money on their new policies.
100,000 Citizens Property policies could shift to Tampa-based insurer
Tampa-based insurer Slide is set to take over as many as 100,000 homeowners policies in October from Citizens Property Insurance Corp. — the state-run insurer — according to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation.
Driving the news: Insurance Commissioner Michael Yaworsky approved proposals this week that allow four other private insurers to assume Citizens policies, too.
The move could result in almost 200,000 policyholders moving from the state-backed insurer to the private market.
Why it matters: Floridians are already on the hook for the nation's highest average premium at nearly $6,000 a year, and experts told Axios that thrusting more consumers into the private market will leave them with costlier rates.
The Legislature's remedy to drive consumers back into the private market, SB 2A which passed last December, barred homeowners from renewing their coverage with Citizens if they receive an offer from a private insurer that is no more than 20% more expensive than their current policy.
By the numbers: SafePoint received approval to assume as many as 30,000 policies; Southern Oak, 25,000; Florida Peninsula, 19,000; and Monarch, 10,000.
The intrigue: Slide can now offer people an insurance policy over 10% more expensive than Citizens.
Policyholders transferred from Citizens will face significant price increases since their current rates are far below the private market, the Tampa Bay Business Journal reports.
Be smart: The five insurers can choose which of the approved 184,000 policies they want to assume. So, not all policyholders will shift out of Citizens, according to 10 Tampa Bay.
For the first time in three years, Florida’s struggling domestic residential property insurers have posted a quarterly profit, according to an analysis by S&P Global Market Intelligence.
Excluding Citizens Property Insurance Corp., Florida property insurers reported $38.6 million in profit in the first quarter of 2023. That compares to a loss of almost $120 million a year earlier.
Reporting periods may not include the same number of companies, as nine property and casualty insurers focused on Florida have become insolvent since 2021, while others have have entered the market.
A sizable jump in investment income gave Florida P&C carriers a big boost during the period, S&P reported. Collectively, the group reported $97.4 million in investment income during the first quarter, more than double what they saw in the first three months of 2022. The most recent quarter’s total was the highest recorded investment income since the $110.0 million the group reported in the fourth quarter of 2020.
Operating income remained in the red for the 16th consecutive quarter as underwriting losses came to $28.2 million. But that was considerably better than the underwriting losses of $148.7 million in the first quarter of 2022.
For the first time in three years, Florida’s struggling domestic residential property insurers have posted a quarterly profit, according to an analysis by S&P Global Market Intelligence.
Excluding Citizens Property Insurance Corp., Florida property insurers reported $38.6 million in profit in the first quarter of 2023. That compares to a loss of almost $120 million a year earlier.
Reporting periods may not include the same number of companies, as nine property and casualty insurers focused on Florida have become insolvent since 2021, while others have have entered the market.
A sizable jump in investment income gave Florida P&C carriers a big boost during the period, S&P reported. Collectively, the group reported $97.4 million in investment income during the first quarter, more than double what they saw in the first three months of 2022. The most recent quarter’s total was the highest recorded investment income since the $110.0 million the group reported in the fourth quarter of 2020.
Operating income remained in the red for the 16th consecutive quarter as underwriting losses came to $28.2 million. But that was considerably better than the underwriting losses of $148.7 million in the first quarter of 2022.
The law changes in 2022 may help it be more appealing on-going.
That said, quarterly or even annual profits are somewhat meaningless to some extent given that you need to make big profits for years to offset the huge loss you get every once in a while from storms.
Tampa-based insurer Slide is set to take over as many as 100,000 homeowners policies in October from Citizens Property Insurance Corp. — the state-run insurer — according to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation.
Driving the news: Insurance Commissioner Michael Yaworsky approved proposals this week that allow four other private insurers to assume Citizens policies, too.
The move could result in almost 200,000 policyholders moving from the state-backed insurer to the private market.
Why it matters: Floridians are already on the hook for the nation's highest average premium at nearly $6,000 a year, and experts told Axios that thrusting more consumers into the private market will leave them with costlier rates.
The Legislature's remedy to drive consumers back into the private market, SB 2A which passed last December, barred homeowners from renewing their coverage with Citizens if they receive an offer from a private insurer that is no more than 20% more expensive than their current policy.
By the numbers: SafePoint received approval to assume as many as 30,000 policies; Southern Oak, 25,000; Florida Peninsula, 19,000; and Monarch, 10,000.
The intrigue: Slide can now offer people an insurance policy over 10% more expensive than Citizens.
Policyholders transferred from Citizens will face significant price increases since their current rates are far below the private market, the Tampa Bay Business Journal reports.
Be smart: The five insurers can choose which of the approved 184,000 policies they want to assume. So, not all policyholders will shift out of Citizens, according to 10 Tampa Bay.
Couple comments:
1) Citizens is priced below long term sustainability per their own annual studies going back a decade or more. The state congress is reluctant to raise rates though...for some reason.
2) Car insurance rates are definitely driven by uninsured drivers, but this is driven by high prices to some extent which is due to state laws encouraging litigation and an entrenched lawsuit industry. This is not a new issue, NJ and MI have had similar issues in the past.
Florida no fault law increases car insurance but they determine price by zip code. How much in claims they pay out in your area. I see non stop wrecks in port Charlotte, usually involving old people. Sometimes old people just drive into buildings or canals because they are senile or medicated.
Car insurance can vary a lot in the same city. Usually rich areas have lower rates due to less claims but in Florida you can toss that logic out the window. They also go by what car you drive.
Florida no fault law increases car insurance but they determine price by zip code. How much in claims they pay out in your area. I see non stop wrecks in port Charlotte, usually involving old people. Sometimes old people just drive into buildings or canals because they are senile or medicated.
Car insurance can vary a lot in the same city. Usually rich areas have lower rates due to less claims but in Florida you can toss that logic out the window. They also go by what car you drive.
Old people are safer drivers overall than young people; according to the insurance industry.
That is why younger drivers overall, pay higher premiums.
That is not to say that all old drivers, are safer drivers than all young drivers....there are no absolutes.
Another major factor in determining auto insurance rates is a driver's credit rating. The better your credit score, the lower your premiums....generally speaking.
Old people are safer drivers overall than young people; according to the insurance industry.
That is why younger drivers overall, pay higher premiums.
That is not to say that all old drivers, are safer drivers than all young drivers....there are no absolutes.
Another major factor in determining auto insurance rates is a driver's credit rating. The better your credit score, the lower your premiums....generally speaking.
From living in Southwest FL, the old folks are the worst around here! Now granted, the DWI and such that seems to be younger drivers, especially in places like Lehigh.
You older people drive to slow for my taste as well
Due to the state’s hurricane risk and other factors, Florida drivers are seeing steep hikes in their car insurance rates, and the shift is showing no signs of letting up. Jalopnik highlighted a report from the Tampa Bay Times that shows how big of a problem there really is.
Some drivers reported auto insurance rates that have nearly doubled in the past few years, and many claim that their insurance payments now exceed their monthly car payments. Nearly all major insurers in the state have followed suit, with some increasing rates multiple times. The insurance industry cites inflation, high labor costs, and a shortage of materials as driving factors for the increases, but Florida also has a high risk of hurricane damage and a large number of uninsured motorists that add to the pile.
To be fair, The Sunshine State isn’t alone in seeing its residents’ auto insurance rates climbing. Nationally on average, auto insurance was up nearly 18% in July compared to a year ago. The frequency of crashes has increased in recent times, and the cost to repair the vehicles involved has skyrocketed. As the Tampa Bay Times reported, the American Property and Casualty Insurance Association recorded a 50 percent increase in the number of vehicle damage claims and a 40 percent jump in bodily injury claims between 2018 and 2022.
Thefts are also becoming more prevalent, with a 7 percent jump in 2022, thanks in part to the ease with which a thief can make off with some Hyundai and Kia models. Inflation has made parts and labor more expensive, with costs climbing almost 46 percent between 2019 and 2022. Insurers are losing money, leading to rate increases to cover costs.
While rates are climbing everywhere, Florida is still worse than most. The state has the fourth-highest vehicle theft rate in the United States, and insurance fraud from staged accidents are a significant problem. Hit-and-run crashes are particularly common, and Floridians see high rates of crashes and fatalities, capped off by the fact that more than a fifth of the state’s drivers are uninsured.
Since January, Floridians have filed more than 7,000 complaints with state Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis against their property insurance carriers. The common thread: They feel ignored or shorted by their carrier's response to Hurricane Ian claims.
Upwards of 4,000 of those complaints have been for damage to residential property; 2,500-plus have been regarding a delayed claim payment, handling of claim, or an unresponsive agent or carrier.
The top 10 homeowner’s insurance carriers in Florida by number of policies have accrued more than 3,000 complaints against them for Hurricane Ian-related claims, per records from Patronis’ office. According to the Insurance Information Institute, a nonprofit dedicated to educating the public about the insurance industry, the following carriers are the top insurers in Florida:
Top Florida insurers
Universal Insurance Holdings (643 complaints by residential property owners re: Hurricane Ian, filed Jan. 1 - July 19)
Citizens Property Insurance (921)
State Farm (189)
Tower Hill Insurance (274)
Progressive (6)
USAA (25)
First Protective Insurance (346)
HCI Group (0)
Florida Peninsula Holdings (128)
Heritage Insurance (477)
Insurance companies with most complaints in Florida
Heritage Property & Casualty has had 683 complaints levied against the company since October 1, 2022. Three hundred and thirty five were for delay of claim payment, underpayment of claim, no response to claims, and for cancellation due to Hurricane Ian.
Below are the top-20 insurance companies for closed complaints in Florida, from Jan. 1 to July 19:
Property Insurance Companies Complaints
CITIZENS PROPERTY INSURANCE CORPORATION 1,543
UNIVERSAL PROPERTY & CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY 1,428
AMERICAN INTEGRITY INSURANCE COMPANY OF FLORIDA 843
UNITED PROPERTY & CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY 828
HERITAGE PROPERTY & CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY 726
FIRST PROTECTIVE INSURANCE COMPANY 470
AMERICAN TRADITIONS INSURANCE COMPANY 376
ASI PREFERRED INSURANCE CORP. 374
STATE FARM FLORIDA INSURANCE COMPANY 372
PEOPLE'S TRUST INSURANCE COMPANY 353
SECURITY FIRST INSURANCE COMPANY 283
TYPTAP INSURANCE COMPANY 226
KIN INTERINSURANCE NETWORK 220
EDISON INSURANCE COMPANY 219
SLIDE INSURANCE COMPANY 219
HOMEOWNERS CHOICE PROPERTY & CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY, INC. 202
FLORIDA PENINSULA INSURANCE COMPANY 189
MONARCH NATIONAL INSURANCE COMPANY 181
CASTLE KEY INDEMNITY COMPANY 168
TOWER HILL SIGNATURE INSURANCE COMPANY 156
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