Ouch!!!! Home Owners Insurance increase pf 55%

[caneman]

Anyone else in FLorida been lucky enough to receive their policy yet for 2005. And I didn't even have any claims. Unfortunately, my option appears to be limited to my inusrance State Farm or going into the state run pool only to have it go up another $500 a year there. Anyone else having this problem? 1 or 2 more seasons like this would definitely affect the housing market.

[golter]

I would love to be an insurance agent in Fl. If rates go up 55% he gets a 55% raise on his commissions..

[The Big Dog]

Anyone else in FLorida been lucky enough to receive their policy yet for 2005. And I didn't even have any claims. Unfortunately, my option appears to be limited to my inusrance State Farm or going into the state run pool only to have it go up another $500 a year there. Anyone else having this problem? 1 or 2 more seasons like this would definitely affect the housing market.

Citizens -- the state pool -- is a last resort. Even they say so. By law, they have to charge the highest rate of what the private companies charge. Don't go to them by choice.

To make matters worse, I have a friend who writes insurance for a major company that has stopped writing in SoFla. He says that the highest rates in the state are limited to about eight counties. Would anyone be surprised to find out that they are also the most populous counties? No, neither was I. How long can the insurance companies justify that?

Of course, when they are in the legislature's pockets, maybe forever. After all, the legislature basically allowed the insurance companies to write the current law. It was right after term limits was imposed in Florida, so we had a bunch of green pols who didn't know what they hell they were doing, and they got railroaded by the insurance lobby. It isn't until something happens that people wake up and realize they're getting screwed. To go with your high rates, that's why you're paying multiple deductibles.

[sponger]

Mine wern't so bad, maybe 10%. About 8 bucks more a month. That about 4 hours worth of generator fuel. I hope the rest of Florida will not get scewed to bad!

[jes]

Its not just Florida. My premiums went up alot also this year. I've talked to others who have also complained about the big jump in premiums. We're in Alabama. The insurance company told me the increase is based on the statewide claims from the year before. We didn't have a hurricane here in 2002 or 2003. Maybe they had lots of tornados in the Northern part of the state. I haven't filed an insurance claim, but maybe I should if they are going to charge me anyway.

[weatherwindow]

whether or not it is justifiable, i believe that it is just a matter of time before the JUA is the ONLY windstorm insurer in florida. what we will witness across the state is an effort by private insurers to reduce their exposure. drastically higher premiums and fewer policies written and renewed. if you want a peek at the future, examine the experience of dade county post-andrew. most of the growth in the property base and thus the insured valuation in the state occurred during the late 70's thru the mid 90's. it occurred during a 38 year lapse(excepting andrew) in major storm landfalls. insuring property in fla was a zero cost endeavor for the major insurers. all income, no outgo. while the yearly risk of a broad exposure hadnt changed, this abnormally quiet period was sort of cocoon for the companies. a very profitable cocoon. year after year, fla was violating the actuarial tables. the absence of pay outs became the norm and the expectation. just as in andrew, when these companies are yanked out of this cocoon by the reality of a very expensive major hurricane(s), they will reassess the risks and returns and reduce the exposure..drastically. obviously 2004 was an anamoly and unlikely to be repeated. however, perhaps we are going to return to a more climatiologically normal period in terms of landfalls. more landfalling majors, more often. we are all going to have to realize that florida, for all its pluses, has a big minus. it is an inherently more dangerous place to live than iowa. in the long run, the insurers will avoid florida like the plague. to expect anything else is unrealistic. i am not happy about it but, ultimately, i dont think we can do too much about it

[tronbunny]

I DO NOT want to hear it.
They have a lot of nerve.. to declare that because I didn't rip out my drywall to find my leak, and because there's no visible hole in my wall...they will only pay to clean my carpet...which of course isn't anywhere near the deudctible...and not replace the damaged furniture nor pay to find the cause of the leak!
Because it's wind-driven water...
They're getting off easy and have little excuse to raise their rates much. They do not have to pay a good portion of the losses that homeowners have suffered.
I know that these deductibles and "excuses" are about the only thing that's keeping most insurers in the state.

[HollynLA]

So to hear that about FL homeowners rates but I certainly am not surprised. Here in Louisiana, after being hit by a couple of storms in '02, my homeowners policy TRIPLED. Yes, that's right, 55% would have been a relief compared to what mine did. No, I did not make any claims and never have since owning my home. It's such a shame that homeowners pay every year for coverage incase something happens, and when it does, they get screwed over and over again.

[CFL]

My policy isn't up for renewal until June 2005, but I can say I'm disappointed with the insurance check I'm expecting in the mail. The insurance companies are saying the contractors are charging too much, and the contractors are saying the insurance companies are paying too little. Our local paper said Saturday that it may take 2 years before everyone in the Pensacola area gets a roof. Fortunately I've found someone to do mine in a couple of weeks, and then I'm putting my house on the market. I'm done with Florida. The actual hurricanes don't scare me that much. It's this "storm" after the storm that gets to me!

[Downdraft]

No one has mentioned the fact that inland homeowners continue to bear the burden disproportionally for those that choose to live along the coast in high risk areas. I don't mind paying my fair share for my home in Seminole County but I do dislike picking up costs for someone that wants a condo on the beach overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. Since my policy is going up and I haven't had any claims I'm paying for somebody and it's not me.

[alicia-w]

We have USAA and it didnt go up too much, about 12%. That's acceptable to us compared to the numbers I'm reading here....

[caneman]

No one has mentioned the fact that inland homeowners continue to bear the burden disproportionally for those that choose to live along the coast in high risk areas. I don't mind paying my fair share for my home in Seminole County but I do dislike picking up costs for someone that wants a condo on the beach overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. Since my policy is going up and I haven't had any claims I'm paying for somebody and it's not me.

I'm afraid this argument may have carried weight pre-2004 but with Polk County-(Inland) seeing three Hurricanes, inland counties are just as much of a risk as are waterfront counties.

[Downdraft]

No arguement that inland counties are also at risk. However, look at the damage in Punta Gorda or Pennsacola or for that fact anywhere along the Brevard or Volusia coastlines compared to Orange, Polk, Osceola or Seminole counties. If rates are going up in relation to area and threat I'm all for it, but if they are going up across the board then the old arguement continues.

[OuterBanker]

Interesting note. Our church announced a second collection last week because its insurance went from 6,000 to 22,000. Our church sits on a hill 35 ft msl and a mile from the ocean. (1,300 seat 5.5 mil). This is in Kitty Hawk, NC, not Fl.