Property Insurers Seek Hefty Rate Hikes

My understanding is with almost all policies in order to collect on Sinkhole (Catastrophic Ground Collapse) your house has to be condemned. No more having ground settling and getting 50k from the insurer and never fixing your house. The only way to get Sinkhole Coverage is with a rider, which is very expensive.

 

Citizens is sold via appointed agents. Those agents all represent other companies and usually try to place them with private insurers if possible first for a multitude of reasons.

 

We've been in contact with our broker, and our policy is not being canceled. We are what they call "highly profitable" with our current policy.

 

I could write a book on the whole sinkhole industry. My company handled over 5000 investigations for various insurance carriers in an approximate 10 year span from 04-14. Some real shenanigans went on between homeowners being duped by public adjusters and plaintiff attorneys not to mention repair companies and the ‘experts’ that worked for the plaintiffs side. Nauseated just thinking about it actually.

 

On the other hand just try getting sinkhole coverage in parts of central fla, especially N of Tampa. That tells me insurance companies don't want the risk.

 

Todays Times identifies another risk factor underwriters must consider for condos


Commercial residential insurance rates on condo buildings have seen rate hikes of 30 percent to 100 percent, exacerbated in part by the collapse of the Champlain Towers South condo in Surfside that killed 98 people and an industry in turmoil.

Looks like liassez faire, anti regulation, pro business, lack inspection regime might have hidden costs

 

I asked my son who works for an insurance company to look at this thread and tell me what is accurate in it. He did, and was quite impressed with the level of the discussion especially among people who are not in the industry. He thought quite a few people had a grasp of the issues and a good understanding. He said there were a couple things that were not accurate, but was impressed that others in the thread corrected those inaccuracies.

Anyway, well done, friends. I’ve learned a lot through this thread.

 

If we are going to continue to cover 18-20 year old roofs at full replacement cost, we are going to continue to have this problem.

 

They are going to socialize the risk rather than require people to manage their own risk.


Florida bills limit roof refusal by insurers, add new fund
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Legislation proposed by Florida lawmakers for a special session in the upcoming week to reform the state's property insurance market would create a $2 billion reinsurance fund and prohibit insurers from automatically denying coverage to homeowners' with older roofs.
Four bills filed late Friday in the state House and Senate would create a new fund in which insurers can purchase insurance to help insulate them from risk. The bills also would allow homeowners with roofs 15 years or older to get an inspection of their condition before insurers deny them coverage. If an inspection shows that a roof has at least five years of life remaining, insurers can't refuse to issue a policy only based on the roof's age under the proposed legislation.
If a roof is more than 25% damaged but already complies with the state's 2007 building code, it would only have to be repaired instead of replaced under an exemption to the building code that the proposed legislation creates. One of the measures also would provide grants worth up to $10,000 each to retrofit homes so they are less vulnerable to hurricane damage. To qualify, properties would have to have an insured value of $500,000 or less, be homesteaded and constructed before 2008 and located in areas where wind speeds from storms can exceed 140 miles per hour (225 kilometers per hours).

 

OT...I consider myself fortunate to learn so much here from some very smart succesful people that I would have likely never met otherwise. So pat yourself on the back GC for hosting so many diverse and accomplished people on a platform that has little patience for lack of respect.

 

citizens is supposed to be the insurer of last resort. So, you should have several declinations from other insurance carriers before you get a citizens quote. However, people are realizing that citizens is underpricing the insurance and they would rather have citizens than another companies quote for 500 or $1000 more. The cycle will continue until the undervalued citizens product gets hit with a bad storm and all of us get to chip in to help pay the claims.

 

Good rundown in today’s paper. Property Insurance is admittedly a tough issue, but it really doesn’t seem like the legislature or the Governor is taking the issue that seriously, really trying to solve an issue that is not going and which, unresolved, threatens to upend any reasonable conception of a livable middle class lifestyle in the state.

They seem to be much more short term in their thinking and not really dedicated to being stewards and trying to put this state on a path for a reasonably prosperous future and a good place for people to live. Florida used to be a state that really tried to think ahead and solve problems.

The 7 big insurance issues - Tampa Bay Times

 

That is an interesting concept...but its gonna be tough to find a used roof to replace that used one that got wrecked.

 

These people should be prosecuted first. All the idiots who got "free" new roofs shouldn't be complaining about higher insurance rates. The money comes from somewhere.

 

The option to have Actual Cash Value Replacement for your roof is an option offered by some insurers and cuts your policy down significantly and that's what some legislators are trying to get for all companies.

Essentially putting it on the homeowners and saying you get what you pay for.

 

Mentioned this in post #29 of this thread.
Florida lawmakers, too busy with culture wars, missed an actual crisis

The Democratic nominee for the governorship as well as every Democrat running for a seat in the State House and Senate should go after the Republican legislature and especially DeSantis over their obsession with cultural issues while ignoring a very real bread and better issue that could end up costing every homeowner in the state hundreds if not thousands of dollars in addition insurance premiums.

 

He has - Charlie Crist unveils property insurance plan as lawmakers set for Special Session

It will make a difference unless the national environment changes significantly

 

The owner should cover the depreciation. Let them add the full replacement as a rider if they want that level of coverage

 

Asphalt shingles are now actually fiberglass and last 18-22 years in the Florida climate. That said, you are correct that it is ridiculous that insurance companies are requiring that roofs be replaced despite being in overall decent shape with several years of life remaining.

The much bigger roofing issue is with contractors going door to door telling homeowners that a roof inspection can lead to a free replacement. Basically the inspectors say they find bogus wind-related damage to the roof (often without even getting on a ladder) and instruct the owner on how to file a claim with their insurance company. These roofing contractors often have an attorney they work with hand-in-hand who threaten bogus lawsuits often resulting in the insurance companies paying out rather than fighting in court (especially with less expensive shingle roofs as opposed to concrete tile). Roofing contractors from other areas of the country are currently flooding into the state to take advantage of these insurance “loopholes” and until the state does something, the homeowner insurance premiums are going to continue to spiral out of control.

 

THIS