Hurricane Ian is speeding toward the Gulf Coast of Florida at a perilous time for property owners in the state, who have been weathering an insurance crisis that the Category 3 storm could now exacerbate.
Numerous insurance companies in Florida have closed their doors in recent years in a slow-moving collapse for the industry, forcing rates to spike and property owners to turn to the state-owned insurer of last resort.
Nearly 30 Florida insurance companies are on the state regulator’s “Watch List” due to financial instability, and a major storm could put them in a further tenuous position and make it harder for people to insure their homes and collect on claims. State lawmakers have attempted to address the problem in recent years, but it has done little to stem the ongoing concerns.
Friedlander said it could take “a couple of years before the market sees any impacts. None of the reforms passed this year offer any immediate relief to stabilize the property insurance market.” “The issues that have impacted the market are multifaceted,” she said, “and so I do believe that even with the steps that the legislature has taken in recent years that additional steps are necessary to stem the tide of significant rate increases, to protect consumers to reduce some of the frivolous litigation that’s going on within the industry and to just generally improve the overall insurance consumer experience.
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