Sen. Storms Addresses Rising Property
Insurance
December 22, 2006
One of the biggest issues facing freshman state Sen. Ronda Storms
is the property insurance crisis.
Storms met with Plant City residents Monday at the Bealsville Recreation
Center, the first of three insurance forums in Hillsborough County.
She told a group of 30 about the findings of an insurance reform
committee appointed by Gov. Jeb Bush and released in November.
The meeting advances a special legislative session on insurance
in January called for by Bush and his successor, Charlie Crist.
Lawmakers will explore stemming the double- and triple-digit rate
increases of recent years.
Storms promised to do her best to lower rates of Citizens Property
Insurance Corp., the state's insurer of last resort. She would start
by eliminating the requirement that Citizens charge a higher rate
than any private insurance company, a policy she said goes against
free-market principles.
Intended for people who cannot get coverage elsewhere, Citizens
is close to becoming the state's largest residential insurer. But
broker commissions, hidden surcharges and unnecessary payouts keep
the state-run company from being competitive, Storms said.
"We're saying that there is a crisis, and my question is:
What part of this crisis are we creating?"
Storms said she would work to relax restrictions on the kinds of
policies insurance companies can write, allowing for higher deductibles
and the option to forego certain coverage, such as wind damage.
Storms also endorsed the state committee's call for clear guidelines
on how residents can make homes less vulnerable to storms and receive
lower rates.
Many in the audience grumbled when Storms told them about a mandatory
56 percent increase in Citizens policies scheduled to take effect
in 2007. A bill proposed by the governor aims to halt that increase.
Henry Davis, president of the nonprofit organization Bealsville
Inc., saw his homeowner's insurance jump from $800 in 2004 to $1,100
in 2005 after his insurer was bought out by another company. His
policy for 2006 more than doubled, to $2,400.
"We didn't have any disaster, but the rates went up," said
Davis, 65. "What is the state of Florida saying to me?"
Dave and Deborah Chandler of Brandon have seen their homeowner's
policy triple in two years, from about $600 in 2004 to more than
$1,800 in 2006. Their property taxes tripled during that time, to
$2,000.
"Our wages are going up 3 to 4 percent," said Dave Chandler,
46, who works for a software company. "I don't need to be a
rich man, but it would be nice not to have to give every dime I
make to property tax and insurance."
References :http://www.sptimes.com |
