New legislation is intended to acknowledge that insurance companies have not yet faced heavy regulation. As the homeowners’ insurance industry in Florida continues to scramble in crisis mode, lawmakers have introduced a new insurer accountability strategy as a part of a broader effort to control skyrocketing premiums and company insolvencies. The bill would raise fines for insurance companies that have been using bad practices. The insurer accountability bill would put higher fines in place for insurance companies with bad behaviors. The companies will also be required to do more information…
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Gov Desantis signs Florida insurance bill to stabilize the state’s property market
The intention is to bring stability to the crumbling market, but whether it will work has yet to be seen. Governor Ron DeSantis (R) has signed a new Florida insurance bill into law with the hopes of bringing considerably greater stability to a market that has been experiencing a downward spiral, particularly this year. How much it will work and, if so, when it will have an impact, will be interesting to watch. Among the primary goals of the bill was to help deter Florida insurance claims from ending up…
Read MoreFlorida pushes ahead with reforms to personal injury protection insurance laws
The Florida Legislature is moving ahead with plans to reform the state’s mandatory personal injury protection (PIP) insurance rules. Florida lawmakers and insurance companies have been battling a rampant outbreak of fraud throughout the state. Insurers claim that the fraud stems from the state’s regulations which require all drivers to have PIP coverage. The coverage is comprised of no-fault policies, which require insurers to pay claims whether a policyholder is at fault in an accident or not. This week, the Civil Justice Subcommittee approved HB 119, the bill that will…
Read MoreCitizens Property Insurance of Florida proposes rate increases averaging 428% for sinkhole policies
Sinkholes have been quite troublesome in Florida recently. Earlier in the year, the state was inundated with insurance claims regarding damages caused by sinkholes. The majority of these claims, however, were fraudulent, as regulators discovered little to no evidence of sinkholes when investigating properties claiming to have suffered damage. The overwhelming number of falsified claims coming from property owners has caused many insurers to limit the extent of their coverage or otherwise raise the premiums associated with sinkhole insurance. Citizens Property Insurance, the state-funded insurance program, too will be raising…
Read MoreNew limitations on Florida sinkhole insurance imposed
Florida Governor Rick Scott has signed off on a bill that will change the state’s property insurance regulations. The bill was proposed several months ago and has been the subject of controversy since its introduction. Opponents of the bill call its provisions “anti-consumer.” State officials, however, say that the bill is a necessary measure to combat fraud. The Governor approved the law only six days after it arrived on his desk, drawing the ire of a number of consumer advocacy groups who stood in opposition of it. The new law…
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