A proposal in the Senate (SB 1402) and House (HB 951) would authorize “domestic surplus lines insurers” to issue policies in Florida. Although the bills are in their early stages of consideration, the Senate version recently passed the Banking and Insurance Committee with a 9-0 vote. Currently, because surplus lines insurers issuing policies in Florida […]
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 […]
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) will hold a public hearing at 10:00 a.m. on October 14 to receive input regarding the National Council on Compensation Insurance’s (NCCI’s) recent rate filing proposing an average decrease of 4.9%. According to NCCI, in 2020 the workers’ compensation insurance industry posted its fourth consecutive year of underwriting […]
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) recently indicated it anticipates initiating rulemaking by November 1 with respect to the new closed claim reporting requirement in SB 76 (Chapter Law 2021-77). Adopted in the 2021 legislative session, SB 76 added a new subsection (11) to Section 624.424 governing insurers’ submissions of annual statements. The new […]
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 […]
The 2021 Florida Legislature spent several months evaluating property insurance reform proposals. The committee hearing process included testimony from Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier, Citizens Property Insurance Corporation CEO Barry Gilway and many others. Despite these months of analysis, the primary property insurance reform bill (SB 76) was amended several times in the last week of […]
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) recently analyzed nationwide homeowners insurance claims and litigation data and reached a well-known but unfortunate conclusion– Florida leads the country in litigation by a staggering margin. OIR aggregated market conduct survey data related to lawsuits opened throughout the United States from 2016 through 2019 (the last year for […]
In their recent fall meeting, members of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) elected Florida Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier as the NAIC’s next president. Altmaier succeeds outgoing president Ray Farmer of South Carolina. Commissioner Altmaier has served as Florida’s Insurance Commissioner since 2016. Prior to being named Florida’s commissioner, Altmaier has held several positions […]
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation has issued Information Memorandum OIR-20-03M related to insurers’ business continuity plans and preparedness for the COVID-19 pandemic. The OIR issued the memorandum in response to Executive Order 20-51 issued by Governor Ron DeSantis establishing COVID-19 response protocols. Governor DeSantis also issued Executive Order 20-52 declaring a state of emergency […]