Florida House passes insurance package

The Florida House unanimously passed a property insurance package by 117-0 that freezes rates in the state-run insurer another year.

The package is the result of weeks of negotiations between Sen. Jeff Atwater, R- North Palm Beach and Rep. Dennis Ross of Lakeland. The bill includes some new consumer protections, such as requiring big insurers to notify state regulators when they intend to drop more than 10,000 policies. It also borrows money from Citizens to fund a low-interest loan program for young start-up insurers, a measure that has drawn the ire of the governor.

The bill does not decrease private market insurance rates, said Rep. Don Brown, R-DeFuniak Springs. However, Sen. Jeff Atwater, who is pleased with the final negotiated product, said the bill was always more about holding insurers accountable for their management of customers.

"From the very get-go, it was about accountability," Atwater said.

Democrats supported the bill because of the one-year extension on the rate freeze for Citizens, but not without criticizing the bill and forcing a vote on a failed amendment that would have extended the rate freeze on Citizens for two years.

"It’s a shame that tonight, that on the eve of the end of session, that we are dealing with a bill of this magnitude,” said Democrat Rep. Priscilla Taylor.

The bill includes some of the provisions that Sen. Jeff Atwater pushed for earlly this session, such as permanently eliminating arbitration panels, which had been the way insurers preferred to settle disputes about rates. It also reverses a measure that the Legislature passed in 2006 that allowed insurers to charge a rate that included a profit for exposing their surplus to hurricane risk, which had been blamed as one of the culprits in the run-up in rates in 2006.

The bill also contains a few perks for insurers like language that prevents regulators from denying rate hikes based solely on whether an insurer purchases reinsurance to the somewhat conservative (and pricey) level of a 1 in 250 year storm. The bill allows private insurers to offer their customers a multiline discount even if the policyholder is a Citizens wind-only customer, a measure State Farm has been pushing for ever since state regulators denied them such a move last year.

Comments

Have the republicans ever heard of laying an amendment on the table, or offering substitutes? They just made all their coastal-county Republican members vote ON RECORD against a 2 year Citizens rate freeze.

Amazing tactical error.

If Atwater is smart he will not accept this ridiculous insurance bill. It is a watered down, do nothing version of the good bill he put forth. What an embarrassment the House is. Senate, refuse this and force the House to take the original!!

12:46 - obviously a trial lawyer. Atwater has already accepted the deal -duh.

Yep - gotta' PROTECT those SECOND BEACH FRONT VACATION HOMES of MULTI-MILLIONAIRES while the former middle class now known at the WORKING POOR are SURCHARGED to death on their small inland homestead property!!!!

That's our REPUBLICAN LEADERSHIP - protecting their own at the expense of the average taxpayer!!!!

Remember this November!

[Donald Lance]

Line-item veto for the start-ups Chuckie! This should have said, "The bill freezes rates until the next tropical storm hits". Don't believe a word of it!

Donald, in what world of economics do you think freezing rates will work? Are you seriously that dilusional?

[Plutocrat]

I will pay the full freight on the insurance on my coastal home if the inlanders are willing to pay for their own roads and schools without the benefit all the taxes (sales, gasoline, doc stamp, etc.)collected in coastal counties. And stop whining about the working folks; it is their job to work. If they didn"t, I would have to.

Most people who live in coastal counties are not millionaires in second homes.

Poor plutocrat - it is so disheartening to hear all the whining by the former middle class - they should be grateful that the Republican Leadership hasn't made them homesless YET. However, it is just a matter of time - we're closing their schools, laying off their children's teachers and making sure the safetnet is full of holes! But by golly, we do believe in welfare - Corporate Welfare for our friends at CSX and St. Joe Paper Company!!!

Well they're trying again! Screwing the homeowners with the "Home Court" bill!

Homeowners associations will no longer have to give you NOTICE of an alleged violation. Nope, they just call their lawyer who sends you a Notice of Mediation (in front of a mediator THEY choose). You have a choice then - to either agree that you are in violation AND pay the fine AND pay their attorney's fees and costs OR go to mediation with THEIR mediator. But BEFORE you can go to mediation you have to pay 1/2 of the mediator's fee. If you win in front of THEIR mediator you get your money back. If you lose you can either pay the ENTIRE mediator's fee AND the Association's fine AND the Association's attorney and costs OR demand to go before an arbitrator. The Association gets to choose the arbitrator too!

But before you go before the arbitrator you have to FIRST pay 1/2 of his fee. If you win you get your money back if you lose you pay the ENTIRE cost of the mediation and arbitration and fines and all of the Association's attorneys fees.

If you decide that you'd rather go to court instead of taking your changes with the Association's mediator and arbtrator you can do that, but if you win you can't get attorney's fees or cost and if you lose you still have to pay the Association's attorneys fees and costs and, of course, your fine.

Yep, another attempt by the Republicans to screw the average citizen!!!

Here's a bad apple among our Representatives: http://blogs.tampabay.com/buzz/2008/04/powerful-state.html

[Will]

9:01

Bill number please. you are throwing out accusations that i have yet to find. The current bills passed do not even pertain to that at all.

SB 2504

The amendment to SB 2504 - Home Court Advantage

[Jen B]

Well, I'm glad someone gets a freeze rate hike on their insurance, mine just went up 69% with nationwide. I tried to find an insurance company, but apparently no one is writing policies in Florida. I thought the legislature would do something about the insurance problem. But no......the politicians are a weak bunch when it comes time to fight against the big insurance companies. I hope the citizens of Florida vote each and every crooked politician out of this state. Remember who you work for....the people.