State Suspends Allstate From Writing New Vehicle Policies

January 17, 2008

Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty has issued an Immediate Final Order suspending the Allstate Companies from writing new insurance business in Florida until the companies fully comply with the subpoenas served Oct. 16 by the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. The Order applies to all new business.

The decision by the commissioner follows Tuesday’s action when he abruptly halted the scheduled two-day hearing into the Allstate Companies’ reinsurance program, their relationships with risk modeling companies, insurance rating organizations and insurance trade associations.

“In view of Allstate’s ongoing, blatant disregard of our subpoenas, I have little choice but to take an action that will send a clear message about how seriously I am taking this issue,” said Commissioner McCarty. “Suspending their certificate of authority to write new business in our state should make my point.

If Allstate is willing to pay $25,000 per day in fines to a Missouri court for its ongoing failure to provide similar documents, it’s obvious to me that it will take more than a monetary sanction to get them to comply with our subpoenas.”

Allstate was to have provided all appropriate company documents related to the above topics at or before Tuesday’s hearing, but failed to do so. Instead, the Office received 51 pages of objections to the subpoenas.

The suspension applies to all Allstate companies and it only suspends the companies from writing new business in Florida. Renewals are not affected.

Allstate must continue to service them and the companies must make all required statutory filings including, but not limited to, audited annual financial statements, quarterly financial statements and rate filings.

“The duration of the suspension is up to them,” added McCarty. “It will be lifted when I am satisfied that we have received each and every document we need to properly investigate the important issues before us.

“It continues to trouble me that Allstate has not complied with our subpoenas and is not willing to explain to us their relationships with rating agencies, modeling companies and trade groups and how these relationships might have influenced the huge rate increases they have requested. This clearly cannot be in the best interests of Florida consumers.”

This is the first time the Office has suspended a company for failure to “freely” provide documents as required by Florida law.

A copy of the subpoena is available to review.

Allstate Floridian Indemnity and Allstate Floridian Insurance Company have requested rate increases of 28.3 percent and 41.9 percent respectively. Encompass Floridian Indemnity requested a 38.4 percent increase, and Encompass Floridian Insurance Company requested a 39.7 percent increase.

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News