The Challenges of Florida Home Insurance

Posted in Home Insurance , Hurricane Insurance

August 19th, 2009

For many East Coast residents experiencing winterdoldrums, Florida is the answer to their dreams. It appears that nearly year round there is glorious weather that can be experienced throughout the state. But the reality is, Florida is an area prone to hurricanes, flooding and all the havoc that type of weather can create. Because of that, many Florida homeowners are finding it increasingly difficult to locate affordable home insurance and the state’s mitigation efforts are not providing the anticipated results.

Because of the slew of “danger zones” in Florida, many insurance providers are shedding policy offerings from the roster. In direct result to increased underwriting losses, a slew of insurance providers are no longer extending their products to a range of Floridians. More people are in the position of relying onthe National Flood Insurance Program to get the coverage they need to protect their homes. Statewide, a “mitigation policy” offering discounts on insurance for homeowners who take steps to strengthen their home against the storms is not generating the necessary results.

The policy was originally issued by theFlorida Commission on Hurricane Loss Projection Methodology, however theThe Florida Association of Insurance Agents has many complaints with the system. Fraudulent inspection processes,faulty implementation by the state’s insurance regulator and not making sure mitigation efforts are effective are decreed to be the biggest problems with the program.

Overall, the FAIA claims the program is giving Florida home owners a false sense of security and are encouraging new legislation to improve the act to appear in 2010. The organization believes that the program will be greatly improved by issuing a set ofuniform standards for inspectors to follow.