TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Florida’s insurer of last resort expects to add up to 400,000 more policies this year as the state’s property insurance crisis continues to unfold.
While Citizens Property Insurance awaits a decision from state regulators on whether to approve a requested double-digit rate increase, the state-backed company is preparing for even more growth.
In a board meeting on Tuesday, Citizens reported they were responsible for over 1.3 million policies in Florida. CEO Timothy Cerio said the company projects that up to 1.7 million policies will be covered by the company by the end of 2023.
Citizens was formed as Florida’s insurer of last resort, and as insurance companies continue to pull out of the state, homeowners are turning to them. The number of policies covered by Citizens has doubled over the last two years.
State regulators have not yet weighed in on the requested 13.3% rate hike, which Citizens says is necessary because they charge considerably less than private insurers.
“Since 2020, the private market has increased the rates by 39%…and this is a conservative estimate,” Brian Donovan, the Chief Actuary at Citizens, told 8 On Your Side last month. “During that time, Citizens increased its rates 15%, so Citizens rates that have historically been below the private market, that distance continues to grow due to the glide path.”
If approved, Citizens aims to implement the proposed rate increase on Nov. 1.
