Florida’s residential property insurance marketplace has been “redefined” following an “impressive” series of meaningful legislative reforms, suggests rating agency Demotech.
Demotech states that under the leadership of Governor Ron DeSantis, Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, and House Speaker Paul Renner, the calendar year 2022 was a “year to remember” for the policyholders who bear the burdens caused by the disparate level of litigation that once defined Florida’s residential property insurance marketplace.
On February 14, 2023, DeSantis, Passidomo, and Renner announced their intent to eliminate one-way attorney fees and fee multipliers for all lines of insurance during the upcoming session commencing in March 2023.
Demotech believes catastrophe reinsurance coverage associated with policies covered by the June 1 and July 1, 2023, renewals will reflect the cumulative reforms enacted to date as well as some component of any additional reforms enacted in the upcoming session.
Further, the reinsurers offering coverage at June 1 or July 1 renewal will benefit from these major reforms passed by the legislature.
The rating agency continues, “It is estimated that by September, when the height of hurricane season hits, approximately two-thirds of the residential property insurance policies in Florida will have been issued after January 1, 2023; i.e., be subject to all recent reforms.”
Joseph Petrelli, President and Co-founder of Demotech concluded, “The legislative reforms of the dual special sessions of 2022 are in place, as is the cumulative impact of previous legislative reforms.
The Family Security decision stabilizes claims procedures, practices, and protocols. Governor DeSantis, Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, and House Speaker Paul Renner have accumulated an impressive series of meaningful reforms. Florida’s residential property insurance marketplace has been redefined.”
Demotech is not the only firm to echo this sentiment, with analysts at the Insurance Information Institute recently publishing a report which noted that the Florida proposals have the potential to reduce the cost of homeowners insurance in the state.
In the report, Triple-I observed that the first job is to “stop the bleeding”, adding that it will take years for the impacts of the abuse to be wrung out of the system and for policyholders to experience premium benefits.
