Fla. Appoints Select Committee on Property Insurance Accountability

Senate President Ken Pruitt, R-Port St. Lucie, today appointed the Senate Select Committee on Property Insurance Accountability.

The Committee will be co-chaired by Sen. Jeff Atwater, R- North Palm Beach, and Senate Democratic Leader Steve Geller, D- Hallandale Beach. The vice-chairs will be Sen. Bill Posey, R- Rockledge, and Sen. Alex Villalobos, R- Miami. The committee will be comprised of members of the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The purpose of the Senate Select Committee is to take testimony, under oath, from property and casualty insurance company executives about their pricing practices and their increased profits associated with escalating rates.

“Insurance industry representatives gave hours of testimony telling us that the price and scarcity of reinsurance was the reason they needed to keep rates high,” said Sen. Atwater. “Last January, we expanded the coverage provided by the State’s Hurricane Catastrophe Fund from $16 billion to $28 billion to provide insurers with enough lower-cost reinsurance to reduce homeowners’ rates, yet many property owners’ rates have not come down as promised. Floridians deserve straight answers and we intend to use the full force of the law to get the truth.”

“We worked with the insurance industry and regulators who specifically told us that if we took certain actions to reduce the cost of reinsurance, rates would go down substantially,” said Sen.Geller. “We took those actions. Some insurance companies kept their promise, but many did not. We need to find out why.”

Geller added, “As we learned during the medical malpractice hearings, when we put people under oath, their stories sometimes change and we achieve better results. Let’s see what happens this time.”

Posey said, “I look forward to hearing again from those who have testified before the Banking and Insurance Committee. Perhaps the risk of perjury will help shed some light on why the promises they made last January are not being kept.”

“It was only when we put people under oath during the Medical Malpractice reform Sessions that we finally got straight answers,” said Sen. Villalobos. “I have long advocated for taking testimony under oath from those who appear before the legislature, and I believe today’s action is another important step toward the best public policy for our state.”

The Select Committee on Property Insurance Accountability will meet on February 4th and February 5th. Over the next week, invitations, and, if necessary subpoenas, will be issued to selected insurance company executives who do business in the State of Florida.

Members of the committee include:

Co-Chair Senator Jeff Atwater

Co-Chair Senator Steve Geller

Vice-Chair Senator Bill Posey

Vice-Chair Senator Alex Villalobos

Members Senator J.D Alexander

Senator Mike Bennett

Senator Carey Baker

Senator Mandy Dawson

Senator Ted Deutch

Senator Alex Diaz de la Portilla

Senator Mike Fasano

Senator Don Gaetz

Senator Arthenia Joyner

Senator Al Lawson

Senator Durell Peaden

Senator Jeremy Ring

Senator Burt Saunders

Senator Ronda Storms

Senator Daniel Webster

Senator Frederica Wilson

Source: Florida Senate

Topics Property