By Oscar Miniet
When you spend so many years working in a challenged insurance market, it’s a welcome sight to see things finally turn around.
Following some essential legislative reforms, the Florida insurance market is stabilizing, and more companies are entering the market.
In January, St. Petersburg-based Mangrove Property Insurance Company became the 11th carrier to enter Florida since HB 837 – a wide-sweeping tort reform bill designed to overhaul Florida’s litigation landscape – was signed into law in March 2023.
Among the top 10 national carriers in Florida, 60% have expanded their book of business. There are currently more than 7.55 million residential insurance policies in force in Florida, an increase of more than 130,000 policies since those carriers seized the opportunity to write more business in the state.
Rates have likewise stabilized. In Miami-Dade, nearly 75% of homeowners have benefited from rate reductions, while more than 50% of homeowners in Broward and nearly 19% in Palm Beach have also seen lower premiums. Rate increases are down from more than 21% in 2023 to a projected 0.2% for 2025.
Instead, since January 2024, 17 companies have filed for a rate decrease, and 34 companies have requested either no change or zero increase. Among the aforementioned top 10 carriers in the state, four have filed rate decreases.
Another bellwether of success is continued interest from insurers in the Citizens Depopulation program. By September 2023, the state’s insurer of last resort’s policy count stood at 1.41 million; now, for the first time in more than two years, that policy count is less than 1 million – and Citizens’ exposure has been reduced by more than $170 billion as those policies flow into the primary market.
All that said, here’s hoping that the market can remain stable.
In March, the House Civil Justice and Claims Subcommittee voted overwhelmingly (16-1) in favor of HB 1551, which if passed would allow policyholders to recover attorney fees if they win in lawsuits against their insurers. The legislation was introduced by Rep. Hillary Cassel, a Republican from Broward County and – surprise – a practicing insurance attorney.
It’s not at all surprising to see lawyers eager to undo the reforms that have come to the Florida insurance market, seeking to restore the “one-way attorney fee” provision that had enabled plaintiffs to recover legal costs when suing insurance companies. Let’s hope that sanity prevails and the hard-won reforms that have helped stabilize the state’s insurance market are allowed to remain in place.
In the meantime, Florida’s new market conditions spell opportunity for independent agencies with the appropriate carrier access and placement expertise to take on more business.
How agents can gain an advantage
Independent agents in Florida are quickly realizing that lower rates are good for retention and customer satisfaction, but they were earning better commissions when rates were higher – and now they’re eager to balance that equation.
With more options available to place business, especially commercial risks, savvy agents are looking for more carrier solutions to help make up the difference.
For Florida agents, it’s helpful to think of membership with a network as a wise investment in their agency as market conditions continue to improve. Agencies with access to a wide panel of carriers – including new players eager to write new business in the Sunshine State – will have a distinct competitive edge over their competitors.
When selecting a network, however, agency owners would do well to expect more than just market access in order to truly position them for long-term profitability.
A network equipped with a Placement Team and Growth Advisors can deliver the expertise needed to find the perfect market for every client (including specialty risks) as well as support and insight into your agency’s data that reveals new sales opportunities. Those two benefits are both huge differentiators in the agency network space.
Now that conditions are finally turning around, independent agents in Florida require every advantage they can get – and membership with the right network could very well make all the difference.
Oscar Miniet is Regional Executive Vice President in the Southeast, for Renaissance.
