[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Originally Posted by Blueblaze

Since when do insurance companies care about the law?

Last year, the legislature passed a law that said they couldn't drop somebody with a 15-year-old roof that's been inspected and has 5 years or roof life left. That was the same year that "American Integrity" added a rider that excluded my 15-year-old, recently inspected roof, except in the case of a named storm, and then hiked my rate 20%.

Nobody did anything when I complained to what passes for an insurance commission in Florida, so this year they extended the rider to completely exclude my roof under all circumstances, and hiked my rate 80%.

When the "legislature" cares more about the insurance companies than they do the homeowners, maybe it's time for homeowners to reconsider their choices in legislature.

[Blueblaze]

Originally Posted by OrangeBlossomBaby

When the "legislature" cares more about the insurance companies than they do the homeowners, maybe it's time for homeowners to reconsider their choices in legislature.

Ok.... that was confusing. In what way does a legislature "care more about insurance companies than home home owners" when it attempts to prevent insurance companies from dropping their clients whose roof is still under warranty for another 5 years?

I gave you an instance where my own insurance company simply ignored the law and dropped my coverage, anyway. In what way is the legislature at fault for trying to prevent that from happening?

[Blueblaze]

Originally Posted by Davonu

Slightly off topic, but I may need to shop for homeowners insurance. (No, I’m not a Farmers customer.)

Any advice on a good agent to get home insurance for a Villages house is much appreciated.

If you live in the home, you have options. You should choose a reputable major vendor not based in Florida. I use USAA for my residence.

But if it's a rental, none of the reputable vendors I have checked will insure an investment home that is unoccupied for 9 months of the year, unless you live 50 miles away and can claim it as a vacation property. Figure that one out! They would rather insure a house I only see 2 weeks out of the year, or a house I rent to strangers all the time, than a house that's not exposed to fire or plumbing risks 80% of the time, that I mow every week because I live 15 minutes away, and is monitored for fire and flood! Dumb! But dumb is still better than crooked, which is why you should use a major non-Florida insurer, if you can.

I would also stay away from any major who has a habit of abandoning existing customers when they stupidly exit an entire state just because they stupidly chose to insure people who live in disaster-prone areas without charging them disaster-prone rates. Allstate, for instance, dropped me after 40 years for the crime of living 80 miles from a bunch of houses on stilts in Galveston that got washed away by the same hurricane that passed over my house without so much as rearranging the lawn furniture. Therefore, I will never again do business with Allstate, and I recommend that you not, either.

And, apparently, Farmers is about to do the same in Florida, so they should also now be on everyone's "never" list.

[Battlebasset]

Originally Posted by Davonu

Slightly off topic, but I may need to shop for homeowners insurance. (No, I’m not a Farmers customer.)

Any advice on a good agent to get home insurance for a Villages house is much appreciated.

I know they are much maligned, and not always without reason, but the Villages Insurance agency is at least a place you should start. Being the 800 lb gorilla has it's advantages. I'm with Progressive through them and even though my premium has gone up, I don't worry about losing coverage

[fdpaq0580]

How am I gonna insure my farmer?

[GatorFan]

Originally Posted by Dr Winston O Boogie jr

'Farmers informed the state that it is discontinuing new coverage of auto, home and umbrella policies. The company said in a statement that the decision affects policies issued through its “exclusive agency distribution channel.” It said there will be no effect on 70% of current policies in Florida."


Farmers informed the state that it is discontinuing new coverage of auto, home and umbrella policies. The company said in a statement that the decision affects policies issued through its “exclusive agency distribution channel.” It said there will be no effect on 70% of current policies in Florida.

[/QUOTE]

They announced this week the are pulling out of Florida and will non renew all policies. They have to give 120 notice prior to next renewal.

[justjim]

Insurance Companies know that our State is a so called “high risk” State with the Atlantic on the east and the Gulf on the west. It is projected that future storms will be more frequent and more powerful. We haven’t seen the last of rate increases and insurance companies saying goodbye. As residents we have no choice but to budget more dollars for insurance.

[jebartle]

Originally Posted by justjim

Insurance Companies know that our State is a so called “high risk” State with the Atlantic on the east and the Gulf on the west. It is projected that future storms will be more frequent and more powerful. We haven’t seen the last of rate increases and insurance companies saying goodbye. As residents we have no choice but to budget more dollars for insurance.

Or SELF INSURE if no mortgage.

[RICH1]

Hence the increase in our Insurance policies! Free Roofs for everyone!

[Battlebasset]

Originally Posted by jebartle

Or SELF INSURE if no mortgage.

My homeowners went up about $700 this time around, to about $2,000 a year now. But still, no way am I going to self-insure.

Insurance companies need to get creative as the state laws will allow. If their primary concern is hurricane and resultant roof damage, then allow higher deductibles for that, if the client chooses. I'd rather have a $10,000 or even $20,000 deductible, or forego coverage for my roof altogether if it saves a significant amount of money, vs having no insurance for other non-storm related events.

Florida is a higher risk location for property damage, which I think most of us realized when we bought here. However, we are all paying the price for an out-of-control legal environment that is not going to be easy to fix. Per a December 2022 article from the WSJ:

"Florida insurers faced more than 100,000 lawsuits last year claiming $7.8 billion in damages, while the other 49 states faced a total of 24,700 claiming $2.4 billion. Between 2016 and 2021, property insurer litigation costs doubled to more than $3 billion. Hurricane risk is partly responsible. But so are plaintiff attorneys’ fees, which account for 71% of insurer legal costs while only 8% has gone to policy holders."

Find a way to fix, really fix, that, and this becomes more manageable, IMO.

[Blueblaze]

Originally Posted by Battlebasset

My homeowners went up about $700 this time around, to about $2,000 a year now. But still, no way am I going to self-insure.

Insurance companies need to get creative as the state laws will allow. If their primary concern is hurricane and resultant roof damage, then allow higher deductibles for that, if the client chooses. I'd rather have a $10,000 or even $20,000 deductible, or forego coverage for my roof altogether if it saves a significant amount of money, vs having no insurance for other non-storm related events.

Florida is a higher risk location for property damage, which I think most of us realized when we bought here. However, we are all paying the price for an out-of-control legal environment that is not going to be easy to fix. Per a December 2022 article from the WSJ:

"Florida insurers faced more than 100,000 lawsuits last year claiming $7.8 billion in damages, while the other 49 states faced a total of 24,700 claiming $2.4 billion. Between 2016 and 2021, property insurer litigation costs doubled to more than $3 billion. Hurricane risk is partly responsible. But so are plaintiff attorneys’ fees, which account for 71% of insurer legal costs while only 8% has gone to policy holders."

Find a way to fix, really fix, that, and this becomes more manageable, IMO.

If only it could work that way!

This year, my Florida insurance company dropped my roof coverage entirely, forced me to accept arbitration, and then hiked my rate 80%. Last year, they dropped my roof coverage to "named storm only" and hiked my rate 20%. They did that in the same year that the state passed a law that said they couldn't!

And not all of Florida is high risk. The Villages is probably the lowest risk community in the nation. In Texas, I lived the same distance from the coast and experienced 3 hurricanes in 10 years. My insurance was half what I pay here for a concrete-and-steel house wind-rated to 110 mph, that has never experienced a hurricane.

It's tough to fix anything when you're dealing with a rigged, crooked industry and a state that refuses to enforce its own laws.

[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by jebartle

Or SELF INSURE if no mortgage.

Rather a dangerous thing to do.