Three top insurers in the state are all primed to send rates skyward.
Residents of Florida will need to dig a little deeper, yet again, as three major homeowners insurance companies are all seeking to raise their rates.
Allstate, Universal Insurance Co. of North America, and State Farm are all aiming for higher prices.
Allstate’s Florida subsidiaries are seeking increases in homeowners insurance rates by 21.9 percent and 32.7 percent across the state. Similarly, Universal is looking into an average statewide hike of 22 percent. State Farm is also planning increases, but to a notably lower degree, at an average boost of 14.9 percent.
That said, regulators will hold a State Farm rental homeowners insurance increase hearing.
In those situations, where policyholders are renting out the properties instead of actually living in them, they are proposing an increase of 58 percent on the homeowners insurance policies. Regulators will also be holding hearings over the next two weeks for Universal and Castle Key. Both Castle Key Insurance and Castle Key Indemnity are seeking higher rates, of 32.7 percent and 21.9 percent more, respectively.
The former of the two is also aiming for a 44.9 percent average increase for owners of condominiums, as well as a 25.9 percent rise in basic and broad coverage policies for homes, and an 8.8 percent boost in what renters must pay. Its rate request includes a justification for these increases because of the rising risk of hurricanes in the state, as well as more expensive reinsurance expenses and the cost of capital.
At the same time, the board at Citizens will be voting in Miami on Friday regarding their own rate hike proposals, which includes one to send rates up by more than 10 percent for customers taking out a homeowners insurance policy with them for the first time. Though the state backed insurer’s increases are typically capped at 10 percent, as this raise in rates is for new and not existing customers, the cap doesn’t apply.
Together, these insurers make up all of the largest homeowners insurance companies in the state and their new prices will mean millions of dollars of additional spending for residents of Florida.
