Among the Private homeowners insurance approved companies were Homeowners Choice Property & Casualty Insurance Co., Slide Insurance Co., Florida Peninsula Insurance Co., Monarch National Insurance Co., Safepoint Insurance Co., Loggerhead Reciprocal Interinsurance Exchange, and Edison Insurance Co.
Private homeowners insurance took center stage as regulators greenlit proposals by seven private insurers to transfer up to 202,000 policies from the state-run Citizens Property Insurance Corp in the wake of Hurricane Idalia’s aftermath
Citizens, initially established as a last-resort insurer, now holds nearly 1.38 million policies, making it Florida‘s largest property insurer. Private insurers, facing financial difficulties, had offloaded customers and hiked rates, contributing to the influx of policies into Citizens over the past three years.
While the approval of Private homeowners insurance allows these seven insurers to potentially assume a substantial number of policies, it doesn’t guarantee they will take the full allocation.
The insurers will have the discretion to choose which policies to adopt, a process likened to “cherry picking” by Citizens Board of Governors Chairman Carlos Beruff
Despite this shift, some Private homeowners insurance may find themselves paying more for coverage. A legislative change enacted in December mandates Citizen’s customers to accept offers from Private homeowners insurance if the costs are within 20% of Citizens’ premiums.
This move toward private homeowners insurance reflects a broader effort to fortify the insurance market, with potential benefits for the industry. In a climate where natural disasters loom, the reshuffling of policies aims to mitigate financial risks should Florida face major hurricanes.
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