Latest Florida Headlines
All the headlines from our Florida Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Feds Approve $616M for Florida Irma Recovery
Jul 5 2018 // The federal government has approved Florida’s request for $616 million that will be partially used to repair homes destroyed or damaged by Hurricane Irma last year. Gov. Rick Scott and Housing Secretary Ben Carson...
CFO: Florida Workers’ Comp Carriers to Save $20M in Costs Next Year
Jul 5 2018 // Cost savings in two Florida funds paid into by workers’ compensation carriers are expected to equal a nearly $20 million reduction in expenses for insurers operating in the state next year, according to a statement...
SUNZ Forms Florida-Based Workers’ Comp Subrogation Services Company
Jul 2 2018 // SUNZ Holdings, LLC, a provider of large deductible workers’ compensation insurance products, has formed Avalon Subrogation Partners, LLC, a subrogation company focused on recovering claim payments from parties who...
Nearly $2M in Property Damage from Florida Fire Started by Controlled Burn
Jul 2 2018 // Officials estimate $1.7 million in property damage was lost to a “controlled-burn” fire that blazed out of control and destroyed 36 homes in a tiny Florida Panhandle community. The Tallahassee Democrat reports...
Florida’s Citizens Delays Decision on Proposed Rate Increases
Jul 2 2018 // Florida’s Citizens Property Insurance Corp. will wait until December to determine its 2019 insurance rates and whether it will approve a proposed 7.9 percent statewide increase for homeowners policies. The decision...
Sea Level Rise Puts $117.5B at Risk from Chronic Flooding
Jul 2 2018 // Those interested in risk management are starting to take climate change a bit more seriously. The evidence is anecdotal, but for that proof one can just ask Phil Renaud, executive director for the Risk Institute at Ohio...
Fire that Destroyed 36 Homes in Florida Sparked by Controlled Burn
Jun 29 2018 // John Matthew Polous watched a “controlled-burn” fire for three days as it consumed foliage outside his tiny community on the Florida Panhandle. And then he watched as it quickly raged out of control. What he...
Florida-Based AssuredPartners Acquires B&W Brokers of London
Jun 28 2018 // AssuredPartners Inc., the Lake Mary, Fla.-based insurance broker, has acquired B&W Brokers Ltd. of London. Specializing in providing casualty and property insurance and placing binding authorities, B&W services...
Dozens of Homes in North Florida Damaged by Wildfire
Jun 27 2018 // A fast-moving wildfire damaged or destroyed dozens of homes in a Florida county. Gov. Rick Scott visited the small coastal community of Eastpoint on Monday to get an update on the damage. Eastpoint is in Franklin County...
Gulfstream of Florida Promotes Killingsworth to VP of Sales, Marketing, Agency Licensing
Jun 27 2018 // Gulfstream Property and Casualty Insurance Co., based in Sarasota, Fla., has promoted Mike Killingsworth to vice president of Sales, Marketing and Agency Licensing. In this leadership position, Killingsworth will spearhead...
Opinion: Is Florida’s Flood Insurance Industry Really Prepared?
Jun 26 2018 // The clock is ticking: The National Flood Insurance Program expires on July 31, 2018; so what happens next? It is well documented that the NFIP is broken and has been in disarray for a long time. The NFIP’s primary...
Florida Man Sentenced to Five Years’ Probation for Workers’ Comp Fraud
Jun 25 2018 // A Trinity, Fla., man has been sentenced to five years’ probation, with the first six months to be served on home detention, for making a false statement in connection with his workers’ compensation benefits. As...
Florida Utility Contractor Faces Nearly $19K in Fines for Safety Hazards
Jun 25 2018 // South Florida utility contractor Douglas N. Higgins is facing $18,659 in proposed penalties after the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited the contractor for exposing...
Florida Court Puts Hold On Smokable Medical Marijuana
Jun 22 2018 // A Florida circuit court has reinstated a stay on smoking medical marijuana. The state’s 1st District Court of Appeal has ruled that the hold will remain in effect “pending final disposition of the merits of (a...
Hurricane Irma Blamed for Worst Florida Citrus Crop Since 1940s
Jun 22 2018 // Florida’s citrus growers are blaming Hurricane Irma for one of their worst seasons in decades. In a Naples Daily News report, U.S. agriculture officials said Florida’s orange production dropped nearly 35...
Sea Level Rise Puts $117.5B at Risk from Chronic Flooding
Jun 21 2018 // Those interested in risk management are starting to take climate change a bit more seriously. The evidence is anecdotal, but for that proof one can just ask Phil Renaud, executive director for the Risk Institute at Ohio...
Florida’s Citizens Delays Decision on Proposed 2019 Rate Increases
Jun 21 2018 // Florida’s Citizens Property Insurance Corp. will wait until December to determine its 2019 insurance rates and whether it will approve a proposed 7.9 percent statewide increase for homeowners policies. The decision...
Survey: Floridians Still Not Adequately Prepared for Hurricane Season
Jun 20 2018 // Just six months after the punishing 2017 season battered the Sunshine State, most Floridians are still not prepared for the potential assault of another hurricane season, according to a survey by the FAIR Foundation. The...
Investigation of Derailed Florida Roller Coaster that Injured 9 Underway
Jun 20 2018 // Some passengers who were riding a Florida roller coaster when it derailed last week could have lifelong injuries, an attorney for three of the nine riders who were hospitalized said Monday. The riders suffered broken...
Citizens to Implement New Lobbyist Registration System Aug. 1
Jun 19 2018 // Citizens Property Insurance Corp., the Florida state-run insurer of last resort, has devised a new policy requiring lobbyists seeking to lobby the insurer to register via a new online registration system. The new corporate...
