The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation has announced that the Citizens Rate Hearing is scheduled for Thursday, August 1, 2024 beginning at 1 pm in Tallahassee. Representatives from FIRM will attend the hearing and make public comments arguing against any rate increase for Monroe County.
The Citizens Property Insurance Corporation Board of Governors approved the recommended rates for 2025 that call for a statewide average increase of 14% for homeowners, condominium unit owners, dwellings, renters and mobile homes. If approved by the Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) at the Citizens Rate Hearing the new rates will go into effect July 1, 2025.
What do the proposed rates look like for Monroe County?
The recommended increase for HW2 – Wind Only Homeowner policies is 16.6%. How can that be higher than the cap imposed by statute? Because Citizens has removed the cap for non-primary homes, the 16.6% is the combined increase for both non-primary and primary.
The recommended increase for HW6 – Wind Only Condominium policies is 20.9%. Condominiums are treated the same as commercial policies and have a higher rate cap.
Monroe County has the second highest rate increase for 2025 for all personal lines combined. Since 2003, Monroe County continues to be a profit center for Citizens.
No rate increase for Monroe County
The Florida Keys are an Area of Critical State Concern that lacks any private market competition for Citizens.
- Monroe County residents are burdened by the Citizens flood insurance requirement despite the fact that many of our homes are elevated. Homeowners with no mortgage are forced to carry flood insurance that they may never make a claim on, but they have no choice to purchase windstorm insurance elsewhere.
- Citizens $1M coverage cap means that many Monroe County homeowners cannot obtain windstorm insurance since there are no other options. Homeowners are forced by lenders to pay for costly force-placed insurance that doesn’t cover their property. Increasing rates while offering insufficient coverage is unjust and inequitable.
Monroe County has a history of premiums exceeding claims. Since 2003, Monroe County has paid nearly $900M in premiums over claims. This is due to two factors: 1) Monroe County building codes are the strictest in the state, and 2) the CAT models continue to overstate Monroe exposure.
FIRM is asking our members once again to submit public comments opposing the rate increase for Monroe County. Click on the link to Submit Comments to OIR where a pre-formatted email will pop-up ready for you add your name address, and of course you can let the OIR know how the rate increases have affected you personally.
In 2017 then-Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier denied Citizens’ recommended rate increase for Monroe County based on FIRM’s arguments, and that freeze held for 3 years. The OIR does pay attention to public comments.
Comments will be accepted for consideration on rate filings until 5:00 p.m. on August 15, 2024. Under Florida law, written communications to the OIR are public record and subject to disclosure, including being available to the public and media.
The hearing is available via webinar at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3788507392134968671 Access via telephone dial: 1(877) 568-4108; Access Code: 768-800-634
https://www.flrules.org/gateway/View_Notice.asp?id=28564771