Latest Florida Headlines
All the headlines from our Florida Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Florida Legislative Preview 2020: Industry Calls On Lawmakers to Reform Lawsuit Abuse
Jan 16 2020 // The Florida Legislature started its 2020 legislative session this week and lawmakers are set to consider a number of insurance-focused issues over the course of the 60-day period. At the top of the list for industry and...
HCI to Acquire Policies of Florida’s Anchor P&C; Weston to Acquire Anchor Specialty
Jan 15 2020 // Two Florida-based homeowners insurers, Anchor Property & Casualty and Anchor Specialty Insurance, have succumbed to market pressures in the state and will be acquired by other companies. Tampa, Fla.-based HCI Group has...
An Update on Florida Insurer Downgrade Situation: Demotech Commentary
Jan 14 2020 // Demotech began involvement with the Florida homeowners’ insurance market at the State of Florida’s invitation in 1996 and today reviews and rates 46 insurers that write approximately 66% of Florida’s...
South Florida Town Starts Resilience Fund to Adapt to Climate Change
Jan 10 2020 // A small ocean-side town in South Florida has created a “resilience fund” that will be used to help residents adapt to climate change in a first-of-its-kind effort. The town of Surfside’s fund will be used...
More Than a Dozen Florida Insurers Facing Ratings Downgrades
Jan 9 2020 // The rating agency responsible for assigning financial stability ratings (FSR) to more than 40 Florida domestic insurers has warned that several carriers will receive downgrades due to deteriorating conditions in the...
New York Governor Lays out Aggressive Climate Change Plan
Jan 9 2020 // New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is proposing an aggressive climate change-fighting campaign for his state that includes a $3-billion bond act that would be put on the ballot this November. Cuomo, who says that money would go to...
Rehabilitation of Florida Insurer Windhaven Deemed ‘Useless’; Judge Orders Liquidation
Jan 7 2020 // Plans to rehabilitate Florida auto insurer Windhaven Insurance Co. have been deemed “useless” and the company will instead be liquidated. In a Jan. 6 order, Leon County Court Judge Ronald W. Flury said the...
Tornado Damages Buildings in Central Florida City
Jan 7 2020 // The National Weather Service said a tornado touched down in a central Florida community Saturday and caused around $20,000 in damage to city property. The National Weather Service confirmed the tornado traveled a quarter...
AssuredPartners Acquires Star & Shield Insurance Services of Florida
Jan 7 2020 // AssuredPartners, Inc. has acquired Star & Shield Insurance Services located in Tallahassee, Fla. The team of 11 will remain under the operational leadership of Frank Russo and Allyson Olver. The agency currently...
Maximum Adds Burns to Florida Team
Jan 7 2020 // Maximum, an independent, Chicago-based excess and surplus lines wholesaler, has hired Kevin Burns to its Tampa, Fla.-based team. Kevin Burns Burns has nearly a decade of experience in the property and casualty sector and...
Injured Disney Cruise Line Worker Awarded $4M by Florida Jury
Jan 6 2020 // A Florida jury has decided that a Disney Cruise Line worker deserves $4 million from the company based on her claim that she got inadequate medical care from ship doctors after she was hit by a car during a port of...
Brightway Insurance of Florida Names Co-Founder Michael Miller President, CEO
Jan 6 2020 // Brightway Insurance Co-founder Michael Miller will assume the role of president and CEO of the Florida-based company. Miller takes over for Talman Howard, who has been in the position for the last seven years. Michael...
Barrera to Head Financial Services Division for Florida-Based Jag Insurance Group
Jan 6 2020 // JAG Insurance Group – a South Florida-based commercial insurance agency with Florida offices in Coral Gables and Delray Beach, and Charlotte, N.C. – has added Omar Barerra to the firm to lead a newly-formed division,...
Iowa Risk Pool Criticized for Travel Seeking to Block State Audit
Jan 6 2020 // A group that insures local governments across Iowa is going to court to try to block the state auditor from reviewing its spending, including on board members’ travel to out-of-state vacation destinations. The Iowa...
Insurance Journal’s Top 10 Southeast Region Stories of 2019
Jan 2 2020 // It was a relatively quiet year for the Southeast in terms of major catastrophes compared with 2018 when Hurricane’s Michael and Florence caused major damage in the region. This year, Hurricane Dorian sideswiped the...
Fourth Sewer Line in a Month Ruptures in South Florida City
Dec 31 2019 // For the fourth time in a month, a South Florida sewer line has ruptured. The sewer line burst on Friday at a park in Fort Lauderdale. It was repaired overnight when crews removed the damaged section of 16-inch force main...
Florida City to Pay for ID Monitoring for 60K After Cyberattack
Dec 27 2019 // A Florida city is offering to pay for identity protection monitoring for up to 60,000 people following a cyberattack that crippled Pensacola’s computer systems for days. The News Journal reports Pensacola Mayor...
3 Sewer Main Breaks in South Florida Neighborhood Cause Stinky Mess
Dec 24 2019 // A South Florida neighborhood has been plagued with a toxic and smelly odor for almost two weeks due to three back-to-back sewer main breaks. Sewage flowed for nine days in the Rio Vista neighborhood of Fort Lauderdale...
Semitrailer Crashes Into Florida Landmark in Orlando
Dec 24 2019 // A semitrailer plowed into a historic inn south of Orlando early Sunday, causing major damage but no apparent injuries. Photos show that the truck ran through the wall of the Desert Inn and a portion of the building...
BRP Group to Acquire Lanier Upshaw of Florida
Dec 23 2019 // BRP Group, Inc., an independent insurance distribution firm based in Florida, announced that Baldwin Krystyn Sherman Partners, LLC, a subsidiary of BRP Group, has entered into an agreement to acquire substantially all...
