Like many Property Insurers of Florida, they expected to see a boost to the private market with a maximum increase in rates for Citizens Property Insurance Corp.

After an unusually long and eight -month deliberation period, Florida’s insurance commissioner, Michael Yaworsky, announced last week that citizens proposed an average increase of 14% in the policies of several pears of the house owners would just an average increase of 6.6%.

The measure allowed the governor of Florida, Ron Desantis, to promote it as a rare reduction in insurance costs for some Florida owners who have suffered repeated increases in rates in the last decade, increases in rates that showed signs of deceleration last year, Thanks in part to the legislative limits in claims.

“… The data suggest that in 2024, Florida had the increase in the average premiums of the lowest average owners in the nation, and the general market has stabilized with 11 new companies that entered the market in the last two years” said Desantis in a statement published last week last week.

But the general and smaller rate for Citizens, a corporation created in 2002 to be the insurer of the last state resort, could be seen as a slap on the face for free market defenders and insurance executives who have urged greater premiums for the Citizens The insurer created by the State, remains the largest in the State, continues to undermine market prices in many Florida counties, thanks to the statutory glideepath implying the insurer. That glidePath, while raised by legislators in 2021, still limits the annual increases in residential rates to no more than 14%, on average, by 2025.

The Board of Governors of Citizens in June followed that script, voting to ask for the maximum increase. The data show that for rates are actuaries, an increase of 21%would have been needed. Make citizens rates higher than primary market operators can offer more insurers to Florida, creating more competition and a healthier market, defenders of the Florida insurance industry have repeatedly said.

The new operators, or new subsidiaries of existing operators, have entered the Florida market in the last two years, and most have made offers to carry for thousands of citizens’ policies. But hearing data shows that with the premiums of citizens it is still the lowest available in many areas of the State, only policy holders accepted about 10% of those food offers to carry in 2024.

But hearing did not seem to see that as a concern. About 18 months after the office annulled the application for the maximum rate of Citizens’ 2023 of 12%, regulators said last week that public comments, hurricane loss models, the impact of legislative reforms of 2022 In reducing litigation costs and other data they had led to the unexpectedly small change of rates this year.

Citizens’ officials were circumspects about the order to hear.

“It is common and appropriate that the citizens’ manufacturing process involves a deliberate and exhaustive regulatory analysis, especially after a particularly active hurricane season,” said Citizens spokesman Michael Peltier in a statement. “In addition, as Governor Desantis declared, the 2025 rates reflect the many positive developments that have taken place in the Florida property insurance market since our original recommendations were presented.”

Hear approved an increase of 14.5% for only wind policies for housing owners, slightly higher than what the citizens’ actuaries had presented. But for other lines, the office was decided by smaller increases than the citizens they had requested. For housing fire policies, citizens had requested an average increase of almost 14% for multiple peril. But hearing awarded an increase of 10.4%. For mobile houses, the Board of Citizens requested a 22% increase in multiple pears, but gained an increase of 21.7%.

For commercial property, citizens wanted an average peak of 11.5%, but received an increase of 6.7%. For condominiums, many of whom already faced a perfect storm of higher inspection costs, reserve financing requirements, together with the high premiums of private insurers, citizens requested an increase of 12%. Hear approved an climb of 7.1%.

Citizens now has 30 days to present final manual reviews. Most of the approved rates will come into force after that, with some kicks on June 1, the order explains. The order can be seen here.

Topics Florida Trends Prices Trends