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Assignment Limitations Begin with New Year

Assignment Limitations Begin with New Year

The Florida legislature passed significant property insurance reforms in its December 2022 special session. Governor Ron DeSantis promptly signed these reforms into law, with many taking effect immediately upon the law’s effective date. However, a key change related to assignments of benefits (AOB) begins to have its real impact in the new year. For many […]

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Lawsuits Continue to Plague Property Market

Lawsuits Continue to Plague Property Market

The Florida property insurance market continues to experience reduced availability and increasing prices due to extraordinary litigation levels.  Widely-discussed sources show that Florida has nearly 80% of the nation’s property insurance litigation despite having less than ten percent of the countrywide claims.  Stated differently, Florida had about 100,000 lawsuits last year, which vastly outpaced the […]

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Lawsuits Target Special Session Reforms

Lawsuits Target Special Session Reforms

In late May, the Florida legislature passed several measures intended to address continuing concerns with Florida’s residential property insurance market.  Lawmakers commented that the new laws will not provide quick fixes; instead, the benefits might take 12-18 months to materialize. Unfortunately, this estimate might prove to be optimistic as two lawsuits have been filed challenging […]

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Effective Dates Key to Special Session Reforms

Effective Dates Key to Special Session Reforms

The Florida legislature has released its multi-faceted proposals for reforming Florida’s property insurance market.  The proposed legislation includes temporarily expanding available capacity from the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund, incentivizing loss mitigation through windstorm protective devices, increasing regulatory oversight for distressed insurers, and curbing Florida’s litigation crisis by rebalancing attorneys’ fee incentives. To effectively address Florida’s […]

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Special Session Proposals Address Property Market Concerns

Special Session Proposals Address Property Market Concerns

The Florida House of Representatives and Senate have released their proposals for next week’s special session on property insurance reform.  The special session follows last month’s call from Governor Ron DeSantis for a special session dealing with the crisis in Florida’s residential property insurance market. Reinsurance Protection Although their proposals are subject to change when […]

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Florida Market Needs Lasting Reform

Florida Market Needs Lasting Reform

The residential insurance market in Florida has experienced years of deterioration resulting in decreased availability of private market options, reductions in coverage and rising insurance premiums.  As has been well established by the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation and others, Florida never really had a sinkhole problem, a mold problem, or a water damage problem…. […]

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Residential Property Insurers Face New Reporting Requirement

Residential Property Insurers Face New Reporting Requirement

The new year brings the initial reporting period for a new closed claim reporting obligation applicable to residential property insurers.  In the 2021 legislative session, the Florida Legislature adopted SB 76 which, among other things, amends Section 624.424 pertaining to insurers’ annual statements. The new requirement specifies that beginning January 1, 2022, each authorized residential […]

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Governor Signs Property Insurance Bill

Governor Signs Property Insurance Bill

Governor Ron DeSantis has signed this year’s primary property insurance bill, SB 76, into law.  Most of the bill’s provisions take effect July 1, 2021. The legislature passed SB 76 after extended debate leading into and during the 2021 legislative session.  As is often the case during the legislative process, the final bill reflects a […]

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Florida Legislative Session Begins

Florida Legislative Session Begins

The annual 60-day legislative session begins in Florida on March 2, 2021.  This session will feature accommodations designed to limit exposures to COVID-19.  This includes most public testimony being presented by video stream from an offsite location in downtown Tallahassee. From an insurance perspective, the session will include substantial discussion about the auto and property […]

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