Florida’s Auditor General recently issued Report 2014-009 relating to its operational audit of the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. The Office of Insurance Regulation in turn has provided its responses to the audit findings. The report identified the following four findings: Finding No. 1: Office policies and procedures should be enhanced to require that the […]
The United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida has interpreted the “structural damage” threshold for sinkhole losses in an Order issued September 3, 2013, in Gonzalez v . Liberty Mutual Insurance Company. The court began its discussion by providing several examples of logical flaws that can arise when words having more than […]
The Florida Office of Insurance Organization has issued an order approving the reorganization plan of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida, Inc. d/b/a Florida Blue subject to certain conditions. Florida Blue proposed to reorganize by creating a new not-for-profit mutual insurance holding company to be owned by Florida Blue’s policyholder-members. The new mutual insurance holding […]
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) announced that it has received the annual workers’ compensation rate filing submitted by the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI). The rate filing provides for an overall 1% increase in workers’ compensation rates. The effective date of the filing is January 1, 2014. As in prior years, the […]
The Homeowners’ Policy and Claims Bill of Rights Working Group is scheduled to hold a conference call Tuesday beginning at 10:00 to resume consideration of various issues relating to the homeowners insurance claims process. The Insurance Consumer Advocate previously indicated she hopes to have a draft report available by July 30, so the conference call likely will […]
Governor Rick Scott expressed his opposition to federal legislation that would deny tax deductions for reinsurance premiums paid to foreign-based reinsurers affiliated with domestic insurers. Governor Scott outlined his concerns in a letter to U.S. Representative Vern Buchanan, Florida’s representative on the House Ways and Means Committee. (letter) Governor Scott indicates that the proposal will […]
Citizens Property Insurance Corporation is seeking to discuss its anticipated new clearinghouse with interested insurers. The clearinghouse concept, adopted by the 2013 Florida legislature, will facilitate offers of coverage from admitted market insurers for new and renewal Citizens business. A participating insurer will provide its underwriting criteria to the program to enable the clearinghouse to […]
Today marks the first meeting of the Homeowners Policy & Claims Bill of Rights Working Group. The group, convened by the Insurance Consumer Advocate, consists of regulators, consumer groups, representatives of trial lawyers and public adjusters, and the insurance industry. The formation of the group follows feedback received by the consumer advocate and the Department […]
NIMA, Inc. has announcesthat premiums reported under the Non-Admitted Insurance Multi-State Agreement (NIMA) have now exceeded $500 million in the year since the clearinghouse became operational. The clearinghouse first became operational on July 1, 2012. NIMA, Inc. advised that $281 million of the $531 million in reported premium has been directly allocated to the six participating members of NIMA, Inc. About $250 million […]
In Trinidad v. Florida Peninsula Insurance Company issued July 3, 2013, the Florida Supreme Court considered the scope of replacement cost coverage under the 2008 version of Section 627.7011, Florida Statutes. The statute provided that the insurer would pay the insured the replacement cost of his damaged property without regard to whether the insured repaired […]