Florida property insurance crisis News

Florida Regulators Demand Data From Weiss Ratings After Recent Reports on Insurers

Weiss Ratings, a Palm Beach Gardens financial ratings firm, sparked some outrage from the Florida insurance industry in recent weeks after it released reports contending that some of Florida’s largest property insurers were closing almost half of their hurricane claims …

New Florida Legislative Leaders Talk Tough on Property Insurance, But No Specific Plans

Florida’s newest legislative leaders on Tuesday rattled some sabers about property insurance rates and claims but offered no agenda for the upcoming session that begins in March, according to state news reports. Incoming Senate President Ben Albritton, R-Wauchula, warned insurers …

‘Board Certified’ Could Soon Be an Advertising Thing for Florida Insurance Lawyers

By this time next year, plaintiffs lawyers, who have frequently been held up as thorns in the side of the Florida property insurance industry for their sometimes-aggressive pursuit of policyholder claims litigation, could have a stamp of credibility to brandish …

Point: The Game-Changing Impact of Florida’s New Rule on Public Adjusters

The issuance of Florida’s Emergency Rule 69BER24-4, in response to hurricanes like Milton, represents a significant shift in regulating public adjusters and their activities. While some plaintiff attorneys and some adjusters initially celebrated the rule as a victory, a deeper …

Update: Florida CFO Bars Insurers From Altering Adjusters’ Reports Without Explanation

Almost two years after a group of independent claims adjusters alleged that insurers had deceptively altered their damage estimates and low-balled policyholders, Florida’s chief financial officer has issued an emergency rule barring similar actions in Hurricane Milton claims. “Any move …

Florida’s Heritage Stock Price Drops After ’60 Minutes’ Report on Adjusters

Just as Florida property insurers face another round of storm claims, CBS News has raised questions about alleged insurer fraud stemming from claims incurred in the last major storm – Hurricane Ian, which hit much of southwest Florida two years …

Florida’s Big Bend Braces for Third Hurricane in a Year as Helene Gains Strength

Florida’s Big Bend region on the northern Gulf Coast is bracing for yet another hurricane, the third in the last 13 months. Wind speeds for what could soon be Hurricane Helene are forecast to reach up to 115 mph, higher …

Florida Braces for Potential Gulf Hurricane Strike This Week

The US Gulf Coast from Mississippi to the Florida Panhandle is at risk of a hurricane strike by the end of the week as a patch of turbulent weather in the Atlantic becomes more organized. Currently a swirl of thunderstorms …

How Big Was the Cat? Investigator Warns About Claims of Clogged Toilets

Did you hear the one about cat poop clogging a toilet, resulting in thousands of gallons of sewage water in the home and a big insurance claim? Lin Werkheiser, an insurance fraud investigator, has heard that one and many more …

Study Stirs Debate on Real Impact of Litigation, Fraud on Property Insurance

An academic paper published in the Journal of Insurance Regulation seems to have rekindled the debate over how much of an impact litigation and fraud have had on property insurance losses and premiums, particularly in Florida. The paper, “The Case …