Florida’s Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) has established the personal property and commercial property insurance rates of Citizens Property Insurance Corporation – the state-backed insurer of last resort – for 2022.
The OIR held a virtual public rate hearing to hear public feedback on Citizens’ rate filings on March 31, 2022. Comments on the rate filings continued to be accepted for consideration until April 14, 2022.
And following a review of the complete record and feedback, the OIR has finally established rates for Citizens’ Coastal Account (CA), Commercial Lines Account (CLA), and Personal Lines Account (PLA). A release said that the effective date for new and renewal rates is September 01, 2022.
The rates are as follows:
|
Account |
Original Rate Requested |
Established Rate |
|
Homeowners Multi-Peril (PLA & CA) #22-002005 |
+10.7% |
+6.4% |
|
Homeowners Wind-Only (CA) #22-002027 |
+10.0% |
+9.8% |
|
Property/Personal (Dwelling Fire) Multi-Peril (PLA & CA) #22-002262 |
+10.8% |
+8.4% |
|
Property/Personal (Dwelling Fire) Wind Only (CA) #22-002263 |
+10.4% |
+10.1% |
|
Mobile Homeowners Multi-Peril (PLA & CA) #22-002505 |
+10.7% |
+10.6% |
|
Mobile Homeowners Wind Only (CA) #22-002504 |
+10.6% |
+10.6% |
|
Mobile Homeowners Physical Damage Multi-Peril (PLA & CA) #22-002899 |
+10.8% |
+10.7% |
|
Mobile Homeowners Physical Damage Wind Only (CA) #22-002900 |
+10.7% |
+10.7% |
|
Account |
Original Rate Requested |
Established Rate |
|
Commercial Residential Property Multi-Peril Condominium Associations (CLA & CA) #22-003394 |
+8.7% |
+8.7% |
|
Commercial Residential Property Multi-Peril Excluding Condominium Associations (CLA & CA) #22-003395 |
+10.2% |
+10.2% |
|
Commercial Non-Residential Property Multi-Peril (CLA & CA) #22-003509 |
|
|
|
Commercial Residential Property Wind Only Condominium Associations (CA) #22-003648 |
|
|
|
Commercial Residential Property Wind Only Excluding Condominium Associations (CA) #22-003649 |
|
|
|
Commercial Non-Residential Property Wind Only (CA) #22-003765 |
|
|
The OIR-approved rates come as a new report by the Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I) investigated the problematic homeowners’ insurance market in Florida, which the institute believes is due to rampant fraudulent roof repair schemes and excessive insurance litigation. Those issues have forced insurance companies to either charge significantly higher rates or drop renewal for policies in the state, forcing many homeowners to switch to Citizens, it was observed.
The number of policyholders with Citizens is beginning to dangerously swell, the report found. Triple-I noted that the insurer’s policy count in Florida rose to nearly 900,000 this month.
Citizens’ growing policyholder count is also beginning to take its toll on the state-backed insurer. In a report for the claims committee of its board of governors, the company said that for the first four months of 2022, it was served 3,881 lawsuits. Citizens averaged 970 lawsuits a month for the first four months of 2022 – 11.5% more than the average of 870 lawsuits a month for the same period in 2021.
