Candidate's view: to fix insurance pick new leaders

Our Florida leaders have lost sight of their mission and we're paying the price.

Florida property insurance rates have skyrocketed. To make matters worse, many insurance companies have either shut down or left the state, giving homeowners fewer options. Recently, Sunrise-based FedNat Insurance announced it will cancel 68,000 policies next month, leaving thousands of families without coverage. Now, with hurricane season just a few weeks away, lawmakers are scrambling to find a fix.

There's a lot of finger-pointing going on. Insurance companies blame consumers, while consumer representatives say the insurers'

mishandling of claims is to blame. At some point, though, you have to look at leadership.

We're in this situation because instead of using annual legislative sessions to tackle real issues, Florida leaders squandered much of their time and spent the rest of it doing favors for big businesses.

While homeowners saw insurance costs triple and policies get canceled, lawmakers focused on scoring cheap political points and picking frivolous culture war fights. When lawmakers did pass insurance legislation, it didn't help help consumers. Instead, it was a gift to the insurers. The new law has restricted Floridians' access to courts, added mechanisms for insurers to deny and underpay claims and created hoops for Florida homeowners to jump through. Worst of all, lawmakers shot down proposed amendments that would have protected policyholders by capping rate increases.

Ironically, a recent poll by McLaughlin and Associates found that Florida voters overwhelmingly support reforms that lower rates, hold insurance companies accountable and don't limit consumer rights. When given a list of potential proposals to address rising rates, 89% favored requiring more financial transparency from insurance companies.

Our leaders got distracted from their mission, which is to make life better for their constituents. Now, Floridians are bearing the crushing cost of less protection, fewer rights and no hope for lower rates.

The purpose of a special legislative session is to address an unforeseeable emergency. Our current situation was predictable, avoidable and of our own making. Unfortunately, at least until November, we have no choice but to trust the same people who got us into this mess to get us out of it. I'm not holding my breath. It's time for Floridians to make it our mission to get new leadership.

Adam Hattersley is a Democratic former state representative from Riverview, near Tampa. He is running for Florida chief financial officer.