FLORIDA (SNN TV) – Floridians pay the highest insurance rates in the country, nearly tripling the U.S. average of $1,544. After hurricane Ian, rates are only expected to climb.
Long before Ian, Florida’s property insurance was in a crisis. Now after the storm, many companies may not be able to survive.
“And the crisis was what we call a man-made disaster, not a natural disaster. Caused by rapid roof replacement claim schemes from unscrupulous contractors combined with an excessive level of litigation. And it’s actually the litigation expenses that could be damaging to small regional insurers that operate in Florida. The companies may not be able to survive the litigation,” said Mark Friedlander, Florida spokesperson for the Insurance Information Institute.
The Insurance Information Institute, or Triple I, estimates that hurricane Ian will be a $60 billion property loss event, making it the second largest on record.
Florida spokesperson for Triple-I, Mark Friedlander, told SNN how this will affect the cost of insurance moving forward.
“We expect rates to climb 40% or higher next year. We will lose some of these smaller regional insurers because they can’t handle the expense pressures of the litigation. And will have a tighter market. A tighter market also is a driver for higher rates. So it will be more expensive and perhaps more challenging to shop your coverage if you’re trying to get the best price for the best coverage,” said Friedlander.
Due to the high litigation costs, many companies have announced that they’re withdrawing from the state of Florida.
This concerns consumers because the less choices in companies they have, the more expensive.
By bundling home and auto with the same insurance company you can save money. Talk to your insurance agent about the type of discounts you are eligible for.
The legislature had a special session where they addressed property insurance reform.
Friedlander says that most changes like that take at least 18 months to see and that unfortunately, there is no short term relief in the law. He says legislators who passed the bills even said that there’s no guarantee it will make a difference.
