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Citizens Insurance Rates Headed Up
October 12, 2010
Premiums for homeowners who get their property insurance through the state-run program will see rates rise 10.4 percent beginning in January, after state insurance regulators on Monday approved rate hikes higher than those requested last week by Citizens Property Insurance Corp.
Citing the need to move toward actuarially sound rates, the Office of Insurance Regulations raised premiums higher than the 9.8 percent requested by Citizens. Commercial condominium rates will rise 8.1 percent. OIR also approved rate hikes of 11 percent for residential wind-only condominium association insurance and 11.3 percent for residential condo association without wind coverage.
Lawmakers have capped rate hikes at 10 percent per year, but Citizens can exceed that cap to help build up the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund. The panel approved a 3.4 percent CAT fund build-up rate. Citizens is the state’s largest property insurer with more than 1.2 million policies in place
Comments
2 Responses to “Citizens Insurance Rates Headed Up”
I’m sure this will be managed very well and claims will be paid very well when
necessary..
GOOD LUCK!
Did any of you watch the Florida PSC hearing about this rate increase? It was painful to watch. The actuary that Citizens put before the PSC to present the case for the increase is likely a very task oriented individual who is good with numbers and good at following orders, but not someone who was prepared to do such a presentation. The other representatives from Citizens sat silent and without documents before them as this occurred except for when a woman, apparently out of sympathy for the man, leaned to the mike and articulated what he was trying to say. The PSC’s actuary, forget his name, challenged him on every turn and every point of argument yet they approved this rate increase anyway.
Keep in mind, the majority of the properties that are insured by Citizens’ is some of the most expensive, and all of them are the most at risk for loss in the state. All those multi-million dollar waterfront homes and businesses, all those high value homes in historical districts…properties whose owners should be able to pay their own insurance costs without being subsidized are covered. Every single homeowner in the state of Florida and every single auto owner in the state pays to subsidize those peoples and those businesses insurance. I haven’t spoken with my insurance carrier yet this year, but last year there were 3 “fees” on every auto policy in the state that goes to subsidize Citizens insurance, and I can never seem to wrap my mind around what it costs me on my homeowner’s policy to even remember. Many mobile homes are also covered by Citizens insurance and many of those homes in the state are owned or occupied by people of little means and I seriously don’t have a problem with helping out those people in any way that I can. But I’ll tell you something, anybody that has the money to buy a million dollar house or own a business on the waterfront shouldn’t be needing MY help for anything.