Gov. Rick Scott called on Florida legislators Thursday to set aside $250 million in the next state budget for economic incentive programs, an idea likely to face strong resistance from his fellow Republicans in the Senate, even though Scott's plan includes more oversight of spending by legislative leaders. Read more here
Florida's new insurance consumer advocate wants property insurance companies to produce data to back up their statements about rising water damage claims in South Florida. Read more here
It may or may not weaken before getting anywhere near Florida, but Hurricane Danny’s surprise emergence as a Category 3 storm today has given homeowners and insurers a reminder a hurricane-free decade is no guarantee of future performance. “We encourage Floridians to join us in monitoring the news and weather reports to stay informed,” said [...]
Earlier this week, the legislature failed to advance legislation that could fix a looming insurance crisis organized and carried out by unscrupulous vendors and lawyers in what has developed into a rapidly growing lawsuit-for-profit scheme. Read the entire press release here
An Orlando woman claims the restoration company she hired to put her life back together after a flood wrecked her home instead, and she's been living without a kitchen for a year and a half. Read the entire story here
Today, SB 542 sponsored by Senator Jeff Brandes passed the Senate Committee on Appropriations with strong, unanimous support. Read the entire story here.
House Bill 1107 proposes to reduce the catastrophe reinsurance provided by the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund to insurance companies writing homeowners insurance in Florida from $17 billion to $14 billion over a period of three years. As currently proposed, this reduction will be at the expense of consumers that will have to pay more in premiums. The Florida Property & Casualty Association (FPCA) supports reducing the liability exposure of the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund (FHCF); however, the FPCA would propose reducing the amount of coverage while also lowering the attachment point to make the change rate neutral to the consumer. […]
As reported by the Sunshine State News, “With a bill expected soon that is intended to give a massive boost to Florida’s property insurance market by shrinking the state-backed insurance provider, business advocates and some environmental groups have already lined up their support.” Read the entire story here
According to an article published by The Current, "Gov. Rick Scott and board members of Citizens Property Insurance are pushing for comprehensive changes to the state-backed insurer to reduce its size and coverage, and now they have a bill." Read the entire story here
According to Out of the Storm News, a new study shows there may be a connection between no-fault insurance regulations and fraud. Experience from several no-fault states, including New York and Florida have seen high levels of auto insurance medical claims fraud. Read the entire story here