Latest Florida Headlines
All the headlines from our Florida Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Coming Soon: A Florida Special Session on Insurance. But Will it Come Soon Enough?
May 2 2022 // Florida’s governor has said he plans to call a special legislative session for some time in May, aimed at the property insurance crisis in the state. But some in the industry, while welcoming the gathering, said it...
Florida’s Largest, Universal P&C, Sheds Policies, Shows Improved Bottom Line
Apr 29 2022 // Amid growing concerns about the health of Florida’s property insurers, the state’s largest carrier posted a somewhat mixed bag of financial results for the first quarter of 2022. But the company said it has...
‘Going and Coming’ Rule Gets a Little More Focused, Florida Court Decides
Apr 29 2022 // A Florida appeals court has put a fine point on the still-evolving “going and coming rule” in workers’ compensation law. The 1st District Court of Appeal found that a man injured on his way to a jobsite...
Rooftop Solar Boom Continues: Florida Governor Vetoes ‘Net Metering’ Bill
Apr 28 2022 // A boom in rooftop solar panels in Florida is likely to continue after Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed a bill that would have essentially barred homeowners from selling power back to utility companies. The exponential growth in...
Mississippi Pharmacist, Now in Florida, Gets 10 Years in $180M Cream Scheme
Apr 28 2022 // Federal prosecutors say a former Mississippi pharmacist has been sentenced to the maximum 10 years in prison for a $180 million health insurance fraud scheme involving unnecessary prescriptions for expensive pain creams...
Florida Action Against Disney More Complicated Than Lawmakers May Have Known
Apr 28 2022 // That plan to strip the Disney Corp. of its special municipality status in Florida? It’s more complicated than many Florida officials may have realized. A week after the Florida Legislature acted with lightning speed...
Florida Appeals Court: Pre-Suit Notices Required in AOB Cases After July 2019
Apr 26 2022 // In a decision that’s being called a win for insurers, Florida’s 4th District Court of Appeals held last week that the statutory notice of intent to sue applies to all assignment-of-benefits agreements signed...
Rule Aims to Make Florida Electricity 100% Renewable by 2050
Apr 26 2022 // Florida utilities would gradually increase their electricity to 100% renewable by 2050 under a proposed rule unveiled Thursday by the state’s agriculture commissioner. The proposed rule is an outgrowth of a lengthy...
Premiums for Florida Cat Fund to Jump 12% This Year, Report Shows
Apr 26 2022 // Premiums paid to the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund are expected to increase by more than 12% later this year, giving new urgency to calls to cut the fund’s retention level in half, a move that some estimates...
FedNat Has Until Friday to Submit Improvement Plan, Florida OIR Says
Apr 25 2022 // The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation has given FedNat Insurance a week to come up with a plan to improve its financial footing, after the company’s stability rating was downgraded to level that is not...
Florida Agents Must Return $4M in Unearned Commissions From Insolvent Gulfstream
Apr 21 2022 // Insurer insolvencies are hard enough on policyholders and company executives, but local agents across Florida also are feeling the pain from one recent liquidation and may soon feel it from others. The Florida Department...
Florida’s Harbour Agency Joins Renaissance Alliance
Apr 20 2022 // Harbour Insurance Agency in Florida has joined Renaissance Alliance, a national network designed to help agencies grow revenue. Harbour, with offices in Naples, North Naples, Estero and West Coral Springs, specializes in...
Special Florida Insurance Session Welcomed, but Will It Come Soon Enough?
Apr 19 2022 // Florida’s governor has yet to set a date for a special legislative session aimed at the property insurance crisis in the state, but some in the industry, while welcoming the gathering, said it may come too late for...
Demotech Downgrades FedNat Rating, Just as Florida Guv Calls Special Session
Apr 18 2022 // Florida-based FedNat Insurance Co., six months after it pulled out of other states to concentrate on Florida, woke up to some potentially bad news on Good Friday. The Demotech financial rating firm announced it has...
King Brokerage Acquires Ameriway in NE Florida
Apr 18 2022 // The King Insurance brokerage firm has acquired Ameriway Insurance Co., based in Fernandina Beach, Florida, the companies announced. Ameriway provides commercial and personal lines coverage and was founded by Charles Hayes....
Florida Consumer Advocate, Attorneys Concerned about Growing Use of Arbitration in Claims Disputes
Apr 18 2022 // Plaintiffs’ attorneys and Florida’s insurance consumer advocate are pushing back on insurers’ plans to require arbitration to settle more claims disputes. Some attorneys warned that the plans could lead...
Lighthouse in Rehab in Louisiana But Could Trigger Another Assessment in Florida
Apr 14 2022 // Because Lighthouse Property Insurance Co. is domiciled in Louisiana, Florida’s insurance regulators probably won’t put the troubled company through the receivership and liquidation process in the Sunshine...
Florida Man Charged With Unlicensed Adjusting, Promising Free Roofs
Apr 13 2022 // In another case involving the notorious Strems Law Firm, a Florida man has been charged with operating as an unlicensed claims adjuster and promising homeowners free roofs and kitchens to be paid for by an insurance...
Florida Senator Trying to Force Special Session with Support from Rank and File
Apr 13 2022 // Florida state Sen. Jeff Brandes is not waiting for legislative leaders or the governor to call a special session to tackle the property insurance crisis, and is polling his colleagues to force a meeting, as allowed by...
Louisiana Places Lighthouse Into Receivership; No Word Yet on Florida’s Plans
Apr 12 2022 // Weeks after Lighthouse Property Insurance announced it would stop writing new business in Florida, the insurer has been placed into receivership in Louisiana. Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon placed Lighthouse into...
