Florida points to positive trend in property insurance; homeowner optimistic

"We're realistically seeing reductions of a few dollars here and there," said Ron Assise, an insurance broker at The Horton Group.

Ten companies filed a 0% increase in 2024, and nine companies filed for a decreased rate this year, the OIR reported last week.

"The industry last year had a substantially better year with the industry still lost money," Assise said. "They lost a lot less than they did in 2021 or 2022. That's why we're seeing the stability come to the market now."

However, some homeowners are cautiously optimistic about the market shift after the significant spike in their insurance premiums over recent years.

"It's good to know it's a possibility," said Tamra Ransom, a property owner in Winter Haven. "However, it does seem too good to be true."

The nine companies that have filed for a rate reduction in 2024 are:

* Safe Harbor Insurance Company

* Spinnaker Insurance Company

* Southern Oak Insurance Company

* American National Property & Casualty Company

* Heritage Property & Casualty Insurance Company

* US Coastal Property & Casualty

* Florida Peninsula Insurance Company

* Stillwater Property and Casualty Insurance Company

* American Integrity Insurance Company of Florida

In addition, the 10 companies that filed a 0% increase in 2024 are:

* Florida Family Home Insurance Company

* Florida Farm Bureau General Insurance Company

* American Bankers Insurance Company of Florida

* Edison Insurance Company

* Castle Key Insurance Company

* Heritage Property & Casualty Insurance Company

* Castle Key Indemnity Company

* American Integrity Insurance Company of Florida

* American Security Insurance Company

* American Traditions Insurance Company

"As Insurance Commissioner, my top priority has been increasing protection for Florida's consumers and today's announcement demonstrates Governor DeSantis' ongoing commitment to ensuring a strengthened and reliable insurance market for policyholders," Insurance Commissioner Michael Yaworsky said.

The OIR said it is continuing to see market stabilization due to legislative reform in 2022 and 2023.

"If you ask the everyday resident, they have not seen a decrease in their bill," Rep. Jervonte Edmonds (D-West Palm Beach) said. "But there's a lot of good efforts that we have created and made."

One of the bills the OIR highlighted was House Bill 1611, which put more regulator oversights in place.

"We even put a tax break in this year for homeowners for when they file taxes that will reduce their bill about $75 which is very minimal," Edmonds said. "I think with the combined efforts that we've been making since 2022 and up until this point, hopefully residents will see a decrease in their bill."

Among those oversights, insurers are prohibited from canceling policies due to hurricane damage within 90 days after the property has been repaired and requiring justification if a certain model is used in a rate filing to ensure the rate is fair, the OIR said.

A full list of market regulation actions can be found here. The full OIR market update can be found here.