Latest Florida Headlines
All the headlines from our Florida Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Florida CFO Race Begins
Jun 1 2009 // Florida Senate President Jeff Atwater says he’s running for chief financial officer (CFO). The North Palm Beach Republican filed as a candidate just about a week after incumbent CFO Alex Sink, a Democrat, entered the...
Coastal Insureds, Insurers Brace for Start of New Hurricane Season
Jun 1 2009 // As the 2009 hurricane season arrives, many homeowners are finding insurance is either more expensive, or harder to get. Homeowners from New York to Florida and in the Gulf Coast region are again seeing premiums rise and...
Florida Gov. Crist Urged to Fire Insurance Chief McCarty
Jun 1 2009 // A state senator wants Florida’s insurance commissioner to resign, calling him “duplicitous and untrustworty” last week in a letter to Gov. Charlie Crist. If he won’t resign, Crist should fire him,...
Unsecured Foreclosed Homes Pose Huge Risk as Hurricane Season Opens
May 29 2009 // Mike Manikchand points toward his neighbors in Lehigh Acres — a half-dozen empty, foreclosed-upon homes, sitting on weed-strewn yards — and he wonders: What will happen if a hurricane slams into southwest...
Florida Gov. Crist Signs Bill Capping Legal Fees for Workers’ Comp
May 29 2009 // Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has signed into law a bill that restores a cap on the fees attorneys may charge in workers’ compensation cases. A previous law limiting the fees had been ruled unreasonable by the...
Florida Debuts Online Insurance Library
May 29 2009 // The Florida Department of Financial Services has developed an online Insurance Library to provide Floridians with on financial and insurance issues. The Insurance Library also has information to assist citizens as they...
Florida Gov. Crist Backs Insurance Commissioner McCarty Over Critic
May 28 2009 // Gov. Charlie Crist has rejected a state senator’s demand to fire Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty if he refuses to resign. Crist said that McCarty has done a good job and should stay on. McCarty is...
Florida Gov. Crist Signs Citizens Insurance Rate Hike Bill Into Law
May 28 2009 // Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has signed legislation that will increase property insurance rates by 10 percent annually on more than one million customers of the state-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corp. and gradually...
Florida State Senator Urges Insurance Chief McCarty to Resign
May 26 2009 // A state senator wants Florida’s insurance commissioner to resign, calling him “duplicitous and untrustworty” last week in a letter to Gov. Charlie Crist. Sen. Mike Bennett, R-Bradenton, wrote Insurance...
Only 2 Florida Domestic Insurers Lose Demotech Ratings Thus Far
May 22 2009 // Two domestic property insurers no longer writing in the state — one by choice, the other forced– are the only two Florida insurers negatively affected thus far by a rating agency’s review of small...
Fitch Advises Florida Insurance Market Remains ‘Fragile’
May 20 2009 // Fitch Ratings agency is advising that the Florida property insurance market is “fragile” and remains a “peak risk zone.” The Florida assessment is included in a Fitch report for investors right...
Republican Senate President to Run for Florida CFO Post
May 20 2009 // Florida Senate President Jeff Atwater says he’s running for chief financial officer (CFO). The North Palm Beach Republican filed as a candidate Monday with the Department of State. Just about a week ago, incumbent...
People
May 18 2009 // Zurich Financial Services Group appointed Francis Bouchard head of the Climate Office. Bouchard will succeed Mike Kerner, who was appointed CEO of Global Corporate in North America. Bouchard will work to institutionalize...
Merry Crist Mess
May 18 2009 // Not all deregulation measures are good; some are a mixed blessing. Consider HB 1171 that passed the Florida House and Senate and was sent to Gov. Charlie Crist, a regular critic of the industry who was reportedly hesitant...
Florida Restores Cap on Workers’ Compensation Attorneys’ Fees
May 18 2009 // Florida has passed legislation to restore a cap on attorneys’ fees in workers’ compensation cases, a measure backed by the state’s insurance regulator. The bill (HB 903) effectively overturns a Florida...
People
May 18 2009 // The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers (the Big “I”) has awarded Alex Soto with the Woodworth Memorial Award, the highest honor the association bestows on one of its members. Soto is president and CEO...
Florida Approves Bill to Raise Property Insurance Rates
May 18 2009 // Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has said he would sign legislation passed at the eed of the legslative session that increases property insurance rates by 10 percent on more than 1 million customers of the state-backed Citizens...
Declarations
May 18 2009 // Few Signs “Most risk managers continue to see flat or slightly lower premiums at renewal. The insurance market is still very competitive and, while some insurers are predicting an imminent hard market, there are few...
Florida Governor to State Farm: On Your Way Out, Here’s an Award
May 15 2009 // The man who is letting insurance giant State Farm exit the state, which some fear will foster a property insurance disaster in Florida, gave the insurer an award this week for innovation and disaster mitigation. State Farm...
For Some in Florida, Hurricane Season Is Time to Party
May 14 2009 // When a hurricane approaches South Florida, Robin Sing-Cunningham makes sure she has plenty of ice, candles and a generator. Then there’s the gas-powered blender, storm-themed music (think ‘It’s Raining...
