Here are some recent articles of interest that I found this week for the insurance industry, Florida insurance law, Florida insurance claims, and Florida insurance trends. Enjoy!
Florida Gov. Scott Agrees to Meet with Climate Scientists
Florida Gov. Rick Scott said his administration would be “happy to meet” with 10 scientists from Florida universities who want to talk about climate change, a subject he has been reluctant to address.
A letter from the scientists was delivered to Scott’s office Tuesday. Scott and other Republicans have been skeptical of global warming and the governor has worked with the GOP-controlled Legislature to dismantle climate change initiatives.
When a federal report earlier this year highlighted Florida — and Miami in particular — among the parts of the country most vulnerable to global warming and rising sea levels, Scott said: “I’m not a scientist” when asked about it. Read more here…
Is this a bad thing? Florida Frets That With Proposed Rate Cut, Citizens Could Be Too Competitive
Florida’s state-backed property insurer’s proposed rate reduction is raising questions about whether it will make the insurer competitive with the private market.
Citizens Property Insurance Corp. recently proposed 2015 rates that include a statewide average 2.9 percent rate decrease on all residential policyholders.
The proposed rate cut comes after eight years without any significant hurricane losses and five years of rate increases following the so-called “glide-path,” which limits annual rate increases to 10 percent.
The rate changes also follow Citizens’ recent decision to transfer $3.1 billion in risk for the 2014 hurricane season through a combination of traditional reinsurance and catastrophe bonds, a $1.5 billion deal that is the largest of its kind on record. Read more here…
Flood Insurance Rates Set to Rise in Florida
Flood insurance rates in Florida are set to increase yet again. Thousands of homeowners throughout the state are likely to see higher rates in the coming months as the National Flood Insurance Program continues to raise rates throughout the country. These rates are based on flood maps devised by FEMA. The federal agency has been making revisions to these flood maps recently in order to better account for the changing risks associated with natural disasters and provide insurance entities a better understanding of these risks. Read more here…
Thank you for reading (and sharing). Stay tuned for next week’s weekly review for Florida Insurance Law!
