How Will Insurance Changes in the State of Florida Impact Homeowners?

Here in Florida we have seen some significant and immediate changes to laws regarding homeowner’s insurance policies in 2022. Two bills were passed and became effective immediately when they were signed by the governor in May. These are available to read in their entirety if you want to do a deep dive. We are all still learning more about these, and some of the impacts won’t be clear until we have a chance to see how they apply over time. In the meantime, let’s talk about what the landscape looks like today.

The Upside

Let’s start with the good news. New laws are in place to attempt to reduce fraudulent claims. Fraud especially related to roof claims has been a large factor in the rise of insurance payouts. If these laws are able to significantly reduce those fraudulent claims, Floridians should see lower increases in their insurance premiums. 

The My Safe Florida Home Program has been initiated. This will provide free hurricane mitigation inspections and grant money to help cover the cost of improvements to strengthen eligible homes against storm damages. The application process for this program is not yet live. Unfortunately, there is no set date for homeowners to be able to take advantage of this. We’re hopeful that this will change soon so people are able to take advantage of this legislation.

The Downside

First, even the most effective changes take time to reverse the damage that’s already been done to the property insurance landscape in Florida. If the efforts to reduce fraudulent claims are successful it will take time for homeowners to see the benefit.

As much as we hate to say it – prepare to see increased insurance premiums. Fewer companies and higher incidents of claims means that insurance companies are raising rates due to the higher liabilities in Florida. 

Our best advice is don’t panic. As Floridians we are all in this boat together, and like many other storms we will weather this one. If you have questions or concerns about your home in Miami, reach out to us. We are here to help any way we can.