Another group of home insurance customers are expected to see a significant double-digit rate hike.
Part-time Florida residents are the latest to be singled out to pay more to insure their homes.
Whether you live in a condo or a home, Citizens Insurance has asked to raise rates by 50% for seasonal residents.
State Senator Jonathan Martin pointed out that former Governor Charlie Crist structured Citizens back in 2008 as a safety net.
Instead, Citizens has swelled to 1.3 million customers and that could be risky business if a major storm hits.
“The State of Florida taxpayers backstop Citizens. So I think it’s important that we recognize who ultimately is going to pay for any shortcomings from Citizens,” Martin stated.
The company already asked for an average 13% hike on all other Citizens customers.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Citizens Insurance seeks double-digit rate increase on home insurance policies
Lawmakers recently passed a bill that allows citizens to raise rates by 50% for those who live in Florida for less than nine months a year. Citizens will rely on agents like Reid McDaniel to decide who sees the hikes.
“We do ask them, is this your primary residence? Obviously we can tell by the homestead exemption. If we don’t catch it as agents then usually the insurance company will and say ‘hey there is no homestead exemption here’,” McDaniel explained.
State Representative Spencer Roach is touting an alternative plan.
“What California did is create this thing called the California Earthquake Authority,” Roach noted.
Known as the CEA, it insures homes hit by earthquakes. Roach thinks Florida could learn from it.
“Can you imagine in Florida if we created the Florida Hurricane Authority which would handle every hurricane-related claim…imagine how much stability that would bring to an insurer wanting to do business in the State of Florida,” Roach said.
The plan could potentially result in fewer rate hikes. If Citizens gets the approval, the rate hikes could take effect in November.
Alice J. Roden started working for Trending Insurance News at the end of 2021. Alice grew up in Salt Lake City, UT. A writer with a vast insurance industry background Alice has help with several of the biggest insurance companies. Before joining Trending Insurance News, Alice briefly worked as a freelance journalist for several radio stations. She covers home, renters and other property insurance stories.