State Intends To Deny Farm Bureau Insurance Rate Increase

August 6, 2008

The state plans to deny a recent double digit rate increase for Florida’s third largest property insurer.

Florida Farm Bureau asked the state for a rate increase that averaged about 28 percent.  But Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty announced Tuesday that the Office of Insurance Regulation has issued a Notice of Intent to deny that increase.

Some Farm Bureau policyholders could have seen an increase of as much as 96 percent in Dade County.

“The Notice of Intent is based on a thorough review of the information provided by Farm Bureau in its recent rate filing and the testimony it provided at the July 30 public hearing,” said Deputy Commissioner Belinda Miller. “Farm Bureau failed to provide necessary support for the rate increase it requested.”

Farm Bureau now has 21 days, if they choose, to petition the Office for an administrative hearing. In the meantime, the company cannot implement the proposed rate increases. The 24.9 percent rate reduction that became effective in June 2007 remains in effect.

The decision to deny the rate increase followed a public hearing in which a panel of representatives from the Office questioned various aspects of the rate filing.

Farm Bureau, which has over 100,000 property policy holders in the state, said in needed the rate increase to be able to pay claims in the event of a major hurricane hitting their insured in the state.

The state’s second largest property insurer, State Farm, has asked for a 47 percent rate increase. A public hearing on that request will be held on August 12. State farm insures about one million Florida homes.

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News